HHS Points of Pride
THIS IS HHS
The College of Health and Human Sciences (HHS) is one of the largest colleges at Purdue University and comprises nine academic units: Health and Kinesiology; Health Sciences; Hospitality and Tourism Management (with a Division of Consumer Science); Human Development and Family Science; Nursing; Nutrition Science; Psychological Sciences; Public Health; and Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences. HHS offers undergraduate majors and graduate programs at the master’s and doctoral levels. HHS offers extension programming in all 92 counties in Indiana.
Together, we cultivate an environment that supports innovative research and creative thinking by promoting interdisciplinary research, supporting collaborative initiatives and providing state-of-the-art technology. Within this environment, no challenge is too great, and no goal is beyond our reach. From fighting human disease to tackling food insecurity to improving financial literacy, each of our research laboratories and centers aspire to discover new knowledge that contributes to our persistent pursuit to improve human health and well-being across all stages of life. Against this backdrop, the College of Health and Human Sciences is a key pillar of Purdue’s most recently declared strategic initiative to advance One Health.
Fast Facts
Data as of September 2024
STRATEGIC VISION
The HHS 10-year Strategic Roadmap revolves around seven aspirational strategic themes:
- Build and maintain a climate of diversity, equity and inclusion
- Attract and retain the best talent and develop leaders in health and human sciences
- Advance research to improve health, relationships, communities and quality of life
- Enrich the residential student experience to enable graduates to excel in careers
- Create online programs
- Engage locally, nationally, globally and sustainably to improve health and human functioning
- Create a culture of philanthropy and alumni engagement
POINTS OF PRIDE
Research
- A record $54.3 million in HHS Sponsored Research Awards (FY 2024).
- A record $38.7 million in HHS Research Expenditures (FY 2024).
- 28 Purdue HHS researchers named in 2023 list of world’s most-cited scientists.
- MRI facility
Fostering Success and Belonging
HHS is committed to the recruitment and retention of faculty, staff and students with diverse cultures, backgrounds and perspectives. To that end, we seek to cultivate and sustain an inclusive environment that supports individual success and enables a sense of belonging. We intentionally seek to establish and maintain unbiased practices, procedures, policies and learning opportunities that are critical for equitable outcomes. We seek to achieve this goal in a number of ways, including our collegewide diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) committee composed of faculty leaders from each academic unit, as well as our DEI Science Consortium that provides a multidisciplinary research hub for scholars, and our undergraduate student programs led by the HHS associate director for diversity, equity and inclusion.
Collectively, these and other activities contribute to the development, implementation and assessment of supporting policies, practices and initiatives. College-level and student committees each contribute to HHS’ all-inclusive approach to DEI success strategies and initiatives. Through the HHS Connex program, undergraduate students have access to additional college-specific, academic, social and professional events and experiences that are designed to foster community, belongingness and allyship. HHS Connex offers academic year programming for all undergraduates and summer programming for new beginners.
Health and Human Sciences Extension
Purdue Extension Health and Human Sciences provides education throughout Indiana, delivering university information in person and online to help people strengthen relationships, eat smart, improve their health and achieve financial wellness. Purdue Extension has secured more than $23 million in external funds in the last two years to create and deliver practical, research-based information and high-impact educational programs to meet individual and community needs, including those related to food, family, money and health.
We partner with community organizations to form more than 170 coalitions across the state to address local health concerns. More than 80% of Indiana counties report mental health or substance use as a priority. Purdue Extension has secured more than $2 million to bolster community presence and provide essential education and resources to help prevent crisis situations; reduce youth substance use risk; and create a healthier, more productive workforce.
The Purdue Extension Nutrition Education Program (NEP) works to make the healthy choice the easy choice where limited-resource Hoosiers live, eat, work, play and shop. In 2023, nearly $13 million was acquired by NEP to deliver 12,299 nutrition education lessons and enhance the health outcomes of over 890,000 people.
Department of Health and Kinesiology
- Predicting injury: Health and Kinesiology researcher focuses on factors influencing tendon health for individuals with diabetes
- Voll becomes Purdue Athletic Training’s 12th inductee into the National Athletic Trainers’ Association Hall of Fame
- Purdue Health and Kinesiology faculty, students cradle data to enhance Purdue wrestlers’ performance
- Alumnus Scott Hutton named among the Top 25 Biotech Executives of 2024
School of Health Sciences
- Alumnus Paul Kearns currently leads Argonne National Laboratory as laboratory director.
- Health Sciences (HSCI) excels in the study of health and disease (etiology, pathogenesis, progression, and treatments) across biological scale.
- HSCI faculty are extensively funded by a variety of extramural agencies and translate their findings into the classroom and into the community to improve human health.
White Lodging-J.W. Marriott, Jr. School of Hospitality and Tourism Management
- Includes the White Lodging LAUNCH Hospitality Immersion Program provides hospitality and tourism students the opportunity to work on campus at the Union Club Hotel, part of Marriott’s Autograph Collection of brands.
- Contains four undergraduate majors: selling and sales management, financial counseling and planning, retail management, and hospitality and tourism management
- Home to the Center for Professional Selling
- Provides experiential learning opportunities for undergraduate students through signature events, such as the Spirit of Hospitality Summit and the Black Tie Dinner
Human Development and Family Science
- Military Family Research Center
- Center for Early Learning
- Center for Families
- Ben and Maxine Miller Child Development Laboratory School
Nursing
- Nursing and Pharmacy Education Building
- Bachelor of Science in Nursing program ranked in top 8% in the nation, Master of Science in Nursing program ranked No. 22 (top 4%) and Doctor of Nursing Practice program ranked No. 24 (top 9%) (U.S. News & World Report)
- North Central Nursing Clinics (four nurse-managed Federally Qualified Health Clinics), which were established by the Purdue School of Nursing and are clinical sites for nursing and other health professional students, seeing approximately 30,000 patients annually
- High National Council Licensure Examination and nurse practitioner certification pass rates
- Highly regarded nursing simulation team of experts
Nutrition Science
- Purdue Clinical Research Center
- Ingestive Behavior Research Center
- Repeated representation on Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee
- Registered dietitian nutritionist exam pass rate well above the national average.
Psychological Sciences
- Purdue Psychology Treatment and Research Clinics
- Center for Research on Brain, Behavior, and NeuroRehabilitation
- Purdue Institute for Integrative Neuroscience
- No. 7 industrial-organizational psychology program in the country (U.S. News & World Report)
- Ingestive Behavior Research Center
- Purdue Autism Research Center
Public Health
- The Center for Rural and Migrant Health was founded in 2023.
- The department’s graduate programs recently received a seven-year accreditation through the Council on Education for Public Health.
- All undergraduate and Master of Public Health students complete an immersive experiential learning program where they are housed within community-based organizations, local health departments, hospital systems and other public health entities.
Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences
- The No. 2 speech-language pathology and No. 8 audiology programs (U.S. News & World Report) are consistently named among the top in the country.
- M.D. Steer Speech, Language, and Hearing Clinics allow Speech, Language, and Hearing Sciences (SLHS) clinical faculty to provide cutting-edge clinical practice and education. The clinics offer innovative programs and serve patients in the community while teaching future generations of speech-language pathologists and audiologists. Our clinical faculty are actively engaged at the national level and are award-winning teachers and clinicians.
- SLHS research faculty are leading discoveries that advance basic scientific knowledge related to human communication. SLHS faculty are internationally known and well-funded.
- SLHS is celebrating 10 years in Lyles-Porter Hall this year and will celebrate its 90th year as a department in 2025.
- SLHS supports the Purdue SLHS Satellite Laboratory for funded research projects in the department.
- The Accessible Precision Audiology Research Center launched in Indianapolis in 2024.