Purdue Old Masters

This is Old Masters. We are officially into the second day of the 2023 Old Masters Program. Take a look at the story behind our beloved 73-year tradition. 🚂 #PurdueOldMasters #OldMasters

Today is such a special day because we get to introduce our another AMAZING host group!! Please welcome Seth Morales' Host Group: Magwire, Hallie, Owen, Claire, and Jimmy! "Our group is so excited to welcome Seth back to campus and hear all about his achievements since his time here at Purdue. Seth has become a successful Purdue alum with a diverse career that spans both business and leadership. As the CEO of his company, Morales Group, his accomplishments in business and his community have been so inspiring to us! We are honored to connect with someone who embodies the values and successes Purdue aims to foster in students. We are hoping to create incredible memories and build relationships with the other hosts and Old Masters!" We cannot wait to see all that this awesome group accomplishes! #PurdueOldMasters #OMFamily #HailPurdue #OldMastersHostGroupIntros

HOST GROUP INTRODUCTIONS!! Happy Friday Boilermakers! I cannot think of a better start to the weekend than with more host group intros!! Please join us in welcoming Orlena Nwokah Blanchard's host group: Kate, Avi, Christie, Keira, and Sarah!! This team is so excited to explore and gain insights from Orlena's Purdue journey and learn from her remarkable experiences as an award-winning entrepreneur and visionary leader. They are also eager to delve into her path from Purdue to her impactful work in marketing, social impact, and leadership. Throughout the program, they look forward to forming relationships with fellow peers, engaging in meaningful conversations with Purdue Alumni, and fostering both personal and professional growth. We cannot wait to see all the amazing things this group accomplishes!! #PurdueOldMasters #HailPurdue #OMFamily #PurdueOldMastersHostGroupIntros

HOST GROUP INTRODUCTIONS!! Welcome back from break!! We hope everyone's fall break was amazing, and what better way to celebrate being back than with more host group intros!! Let's meet Jeff Grogg's group: Ingrid, Shayli, Allie, Porter, and Cole! They are incredibly excited for this amazing opportunity to meet Mr. Grogg and the many other decorated alumni! With a chance to learn more about Jeff's journey within the food and beverage industry and his dedicated involvement in his community They are honored and grateful to be a part of such an incredible organization. They look forward to the bonds they will develop with the Old Master's and their fellow hosts! We are SO excited to see this fantastic group in action!! #PurdueOldMasters #HailPurdue #OMFamily #OldMastersHostGroupIntros

Welcome back to campus and happy first day of class Boilermakers! We have a super exciting announcement to share with you all. We will be starting our 2024 Old Masters Podcast Series hosted by our amazing Evening Co-Chairs, Isha and Isaac! Each episode will feature a different Old Master for this year's program. Search "Purdue Old Masters" on Spotify to listen. Stay tuned for announcements on when the first episode will be released! #PurdueOldMasters #HailPurdue #OMFamily

Hey Boilermakers! Today is such an exciting day for us as we are announcing our final Old Master for the 2024 program! Please welcome, René Lewin! René is President of RRLCapital, LLC which invests in innovative new startup companies whose technology provides a product or service which offers a unique competitive advantage. Areas of investment interest are SaaS, IOT, medical and health care technology and devices, data analytics, artificial intelligence and machine learning technology, Edtech and Fintech . RRLCapital, LLC currently has invested in 37 businesses. Previously, René for 39 years with pharmaceutical and devices at Wyeth and Eli Lilly and Company. Rene was Senior VP Human Resources, Wyeth where he was responsible for the worldwide human resource policies and programs for Wyeth's 56,000 employees. Rene spent 24 years at Eli Lilly and had various positions including President Eli Lilly Canada, Executive Director of Corporate Affairs for Eli Lilly and Executive Director, Eli Lilly International. René is on the Dean's Advisory Board for Purdue Universities Daniels School of Business and serves on the council for the Business Opportunities Program at the Daniels School of Business. Rene was an executive in residence at the Daniels School of Business and taught in the MBA program for four years. René is also Chairman of the board of directors at SafeKeeping, Inc and is a board observer on Wellbox. As well as the President of the Sancerre Condominium Association and on the Board of Directors for the Gulf Shore Property Owners Association. René and his wife, Karen Lewin, manage the Rene and Karen Charitable Fund which supports a variety of charitable organizations. A majority of the philanthropy of the Fund is devoted to education and hunger relief. They also have established an endowed scholarship at Purdue's Daniels School of Business and provides 5 scholarships annually for students at the Daniels School of business. During his time at Purdue, René graduated in 1968 with a Bachelor's degree in Industrial Management. He was recently honored in 2016 by being names Alumni of the year by the Daniels School of Business! #PurdueOldMasters #OMFamily

Happy Monday Boilers! We are so excited to see everyone back on campus, only a few more days until the start of a great school year! Before the school year starts, we wanted to highlight where some of our wonderful Central Committee members and OMPO's have been interning this summer. This map reflects some of the locations across the country where our members have been able to practice their leadership skills outside the classroom. We are so proud of you! See you all SOOOO soon! #OMFamily #PurdueOldMasters #UniteGenerations

Down to our last two Old Master Introductions and this one is so special!! This week, we are very excited to name Sirisha Bandla as a 2024 Old Master! Sirisha Bandla currently works as the Vice President of Government Affairs and Research Operations for Virgin Galactic. In this role, Sirisha oversees legislative, regulatory, and government business priorities for the company, as well as work with research customers to fly science and technology experiments on VG’s SpaceShip class of vehicles. In July 2022, Sirisha launched to space as a part of the Unity22 mission, Virgin Galacticʼs first fully crewed spaceflight. Previously, Sirisha served as the Associate Director for the Commercial Spaceflight Federation, an industry association of commercial spaceflight companies. At CSF, Sirisha worked on various policies with the aim to promote and enable the then emerging commercial space industry. Before CSF, she worked as an aerospace engineer designing components for advanced aircraft at L-3 Communications in Greenville, Texas. During her time at Purdue, Sirisha received a Bachelors of Science degree in aeronautical/astronautical engineering. She then went on to ger her Masters of Business Administration from the George Washington University. Sirisha serves on the Board of the Brooke Owens Fellowship Program and the Future Space Leaders Foundation. She serves on the Engineering Advisory Council for Purdue University, and serves as Chair of the Board of the Commercial Spaceflight Federation. You may have been able to see Sirisha on the banner outside of Armstrong Hall! Sirisha also has a plethora of awards in her same such as: International Women’s Day TANA Youth Star Award (2014); Young Space Leaders scholarship (2015); Future Space Leader Grant winner (2017); Purdue Engineering Young Alumni award (2021), Purdue Outstanding Aerospace Engineer award (2022); and the IAF Young Space Leaders award (2022) We cannot wait to meet you and we are so excited to hear your incredible story, Sirisha! #PurdueOldMasters #OMFamily #HailPurdue

Please welcome the wonderful Kathleen Sarpy for this Wednesday's OM introductions... For more than 30 years, Kathleen Sarpy has enjoyed a diverse career in public relations and marketing, working with the world’s most recognizable brands and corporations, and also serving as the driving force behind emerging start-ups and charities. A former senior executive at the leading global PR firm, Kathleen left her “big agency” life behind in January 2001 after the birth of her first child to bootstrap her own firm without a solid backup plan. Alone in her suburban basement (next to her sump pump!), 7-months pregnant with her second child and only armed with a laptop, tons of tenacity and goodwill, Kathleen’s goal was simple: offer world-class strategy and unbridled creativity to the world’s most respected companies by eliminating bureaucracy without ever sacrificing kindness or focusing on motherhood. Now more than 23 years later, Kathleen manages an incredibly talented team of professionals that supports dozens of global, national and Chicago-based clients in the consumer packaged goods, hospitality, finance, real estate and non-profit spaces. Kathleen has never lost sight of the “5” in her value-driven company’s name that remains the cornerstone of her business: kindness, creativity, passion, hustle and integrity. Throughout its evolution, Agency H5 has been recognized alongside the best PR firms in the world having won numerous awards and recognition over the years. Beyond her professional commitments, Kathleen finds deep value in giving back through mentorship and empowering future generations of female leaders. A proud Distinguished Alumni and Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Purdue University (class of 1992), she founded the International Council of Purdue Women in 2017 (now the Purdue Women’s Network) to unite, motivate, engage and inspire 200,000 alumnae worldwide. However, her biggest and proudest achievement to date is being a mother of six incredible children ages 24-15. She resides in Wheaton, Illinois with her husband Chris and a lively household of kids and one uncooperative English Bulldog named Hope. Your story is inspiring! We cannot wait to hear more!