Growth
Taking every opportunity to shape the future, empower others
In a world of influencers and models, you look at these people and you think, “I want to look like that.” But that’s not how it is with the 500 Festival Princess Program.
Purdue’s mark on the Indianapolis 500
From the Purdue “All-American” Marching Band playing “Back Home Again in Indiana” to race engineers celebrating their winning drivers in Victory Lane, Purdue University is integral to “The Greatest Spectacle in Racing.”
Empowering Indiana women through civic engagement
When I was in middle school choir, I was assigned to be a helper and mentor to a student with Down syndrome. I ended up getting really close with his family. I did a lot of work with the Special …
Becoming a part of Indianapolis 500 and Purdue history
I went to the Indy 500 when I was younger, but I didn’t know I was hearing the Purdue “All-American” Marching Band the whole time until I was able to be a part of it in college as a Golduster.
Podcast Ep. 57: Boilermaker Bond: Celebrating 50+ Years of Purdue Friendship
In this episode of “This Is Purdue,” we’re talking to former Purdue football players Mike Phipps and Don Kiepert, who played on the iconic late 1960s team under Coach Jack Mollenkopf. This quarterback duo friendship started at Purdue, and the …
Racing toward Indy 500 dreams
At the age of 11, Bill Pappas saved enough money to attend his first-ever Indianapolis 500. Since then, he has turned his dreams into a reality, along the way working with some of the biggest names in racing — Juan …
Data science for all: Thriving in a human-centered, data-driven workforce
Whatever your idea of a typical classroom experience looks like, it’s certainly not The Data Mine. This unique living-learning community offers boundary-breaking learning for students from all backgrounds and gives students the chance to work on real-world projects with major …
Seeing a community come together for race day
It’s the coolest moment when we turn the corner of the Indy 500 track, and you see all of the people in the stands lined up, and you are the first thing they’re all looking at.
Modeling community service for the next generation as a 500 Festival Princess
The 500 Festival Princess Program started out as a pageant, but there’s so much more to what it means to be a leader and a princess. I fell in love with community service my freshman year building an assistive fishing …
Combining student leadership and showmanship at the Indianapolis 500
At the Indy 500, a lot of the drum major’s role is the showmanship of it all — wearing the big, tall bear hats, leading the band through the parades, but there is also the logistics.
Building and celebrating a passion for community
Being from a small town, there’s not a whole lot of diversity. There wasn’t anybody that looked like me. I got pointed out a lot, and I just knew from a very early age I was not the same as …
Podcast Ep. 56: Boilermakers for Life: The Anthrop Family Legacy
In this episode of “This Is Purdue,” we’re highlighting the story of the Anthrop family, a Purdue Athletics legacy from West Lafayette, Indiana. If you’re a Purdue sports fan, you’ve probably heard the name Anthrop. Brothers Dru, Danny and Jackson …