Reinventing the land-grant university to grow jobs, companies, talent and global competitiveness

The world is evolving at an unprecedented pace, demanding innovative products and services along with a highly skilled workforce to develop them. In the United States, the public land-grant university opens in new tab/window is ideally placed to lead the acceleration of talent development and job co-creation — and the urban engagement needed to support this progress.

The stakes couldn’t be higher: Several tech sectors remain critical to our nation’s global competitiveness — sectors that can make or break our ability to produce critical products that keep the US economy running smoothly.

We saw this clearly during the COVID-19 pandemic, which caused significant disruptions in global supply chains. Lockdowns and other restrictions affected manufacturing facilities, impeding the supply of raw materials and components needed in the manufacture of semiconductors — the microchips used in everything from automobiles and hearing aids to smartphones and toothbrushes.

What sets land-grant universities apart?

Land-grant universities are largely public state universities, with a handful of exceptions. There are more than 100 land grants in the US.

These universities are designed to be problem solvers — a defining characteristic for why they were created nearly 175 years ago. They were designed to give working-class Americans their first chance at a college education. When US Rep Justin S Morrill of Vermont first proposed land-grant legislation in the 1850s, he aimed to “have learning more widely disseminated,” particularly in two areas: agriculture and the mechanic arts (today’s engineering). This landmark legislation was signed into law by President Abraham Lincoln in July 1862, spawning universities that surpassed even Morrill’s ambitious vision through their unique commitment to teaching, research and community engagement.

Today, many land-grant universities have distinguished themselves by directing their collective brainpower and resources toward research, innovation and an entrepreneurial spirit that addresses society’s most pressing economic, political or social problems. They share their learnings with the public to identify workable solutions. In an op-ed for The New York Times opens in new tab/window this summer, David Brooks wrote that “American dynamism was turbocharged by,” among other things, the “creation of the land-grant colleges.”

To this end, the major institutions of higher learning within 90 minutes from urban populations, business centers and state capitals have an obligation to overcome obstacles and actively engage with industry and business centers, driving partnership-generating efforts.

Our more rural land-grant universities must take the lead to foster innovation and entrepreneurship, to equip a technologically driven workforce, to be that magnet that makes it a clear-cut case for business and industry to locate their next facility near our more rural or urban locations. This must be part of the very fabric of our land-grant model to ensure the next generation of leaders has the necessary skills for the tech careers that, in some cases, we don’t even have names for yet.

Reinventing the land-grant university for the 21st century

In a fast-moving 21st century, however, we must reinvent the land-grant concept. We must live up to our responsibility to pass on knowledge to our local communities, our neighboring regions and urban centers, and eventually the world. We must work collectively to address the urgent talent-gap needs of our industry brethren for the betterment of society — and much more quickly than in the past. Think discovery with delivery — on steroids.

When land grants are working on all cylinders, their collaborative culture can foster entrepreneurialism and nurture the human talent that’s equipped to push the edge of innovation to even further lengths while facilitating the creation of jobs and businesses. Fueled by the enthusiasm and unbridled energy of creative and promising young minds on today’s university campuses, such an environment can be a beautiful thing.

There is a dramatically growing need in regions, our urban centers and states across our nation to attract and retain talent well trained in engineering, sciences, and technological and healthcare disciplines. Universities can achieve excellence at scale by advancing new knowledge and establishing stronger and wider pipelines for generating that talent. And they can’t lose sight of an inclusive and equitable future rooted in cultural, economic and social vibrancy.

A limitless potential to impact the economy

The success of Purdue University opens in new tab/window in talent and job co-creation predates my ascendence to the presidency. Indeed, my primary role is to maintain the momentum sparked by my predecessors. After all, Purdue research has played a significant role in many innovations now commonplace today — Orville Redenbacher popcorn, Stove Top stuffing mix, chicken nuggets, fiberglass, the bright-red LED lights in automobile brake lights and traffic signals, the materials used to create thin display screens. Not to mention our storied legacy as the Cradle of Astronauts: To date, 27 Purdue alums have flown into space, and the first (Neil Armstrong) and last (Eugene Cernan) humans to walk on the moon were Boilermakers.

We believe it’s key to our mission to serve as an economic growth engine, co-generating what we call the three elements that advance an academic culture that has direct impacts on society: workforce talent, jobs and careers, and knowledge together.

To this end, a fully integrated expansion of our flagship campus, the just-launched Purdue University in Indianapolis opens in new tab/window, will expand our academic and research excellence to Indiana’s capital city while investing in and partnering with Indianapolis to significantly grow the tech-driven economy throughout the state. It’s an urban manifestation of our flagship West Lafayette campus just 60 miles away — delivering that same academic rigor and accessible excellence Purdue is known for to the heart of Indiana’s industrial and technological center.

This new urban expansion is about creating jobs, workforce and innovation together. It is about ensuring that future tech-driven prosperity will thrive in a population center such as Indianapolis, with corresponding economic growth and brain gain. Further, expanding our presence and partnerships with key industry leaders in our state’s largest city will fuel innovation and experiential learning for our students and faculty across the entire city.

What else are we doing?

• To address the talent gap in the shortage of US semiconductor engineers, we launched the country’s first interdisciplinary Semiconductor degrees program opens in new tab/window, offering undergrad- and graduate-level training along with associate degrees through a partnership with Indiana’s Ivy Tech network of community colleges.

• We signed nine master research agreements with industry this past year, including the landmark announcement this spring by South Korea-based SK hynix to invest opens in new tab/window close to $4 billion to build an advanced packaging fabrication and R&D facility for artificial intelligence products near campus — the result of a collaboration with the Indiana Economic Development Corp. The SK hynix agreement provides a critical link in the US semiconductor supply chain while marking a giant leap forward for our state.

• Purdue is playing a leading role in three new federal hubs — Heartland BioWorks, opens in new tab/window Midwest Alliance for Clean Hydrogen opens in new tab/window and Silicon Crossroads Microelectronics Commons opens in new tab/window — designed to make the US globally competitive in areas critical to national security. Announced in July, Heartland BioWorks will help make Indiana a Silicon Valley of the Midwest. The potential windfall over the next 10 years: 40-plus new companies, 50 or more FDA-approved products, 9,000 new jobs and billions in economic output.

• Purdue has inked partnership agreements with companies and institutions in the United Kingdom, Greece, Taiwan, Belgium, France and other countries. These agreements will help develop joint academic and research programs for a growing digital and technology economy, with an underlying goal to strengthen workforce development.

The downstream effect of these efforts will be game-changing.

Recruiting more tech companies and their jobs to our community or nearby major metropolitan areas is extremely beneficial for our students. They can intern there, participate in cooperative activities, and engage in joint projects with companies. Faculty can partner on research, write proposals together and turn their research into deployable technologies. New jobs create more wealth, leading to a better quality of life, improved K-12 educational systems and other intangible benefits.

At Purdue, we take great pride in excellence at scale in everything we choose to do — especially in the co-generation of jobs, workforce and innovation. We want all three, and we’re proud to be the heart of a burgeoning Silicon Heartland in the Midwest while actively engaging with our state’s urban center, generating the resurgence and further potential of all types of advanced manufacturing jobs for America’s heartland and beyond.

That’s the call of a true land-grant university.