The 2025 fall semester marks the 150th anniversary of Purdue Fraternity, Sorority and Cooperative Life. With it being such a landmark anniversary, the University decided to honor the 150 most influential alumni from FSCL. We were fortunate enough to have 12 alumni selected, the 3rd most out of all organizations. This is a remarkable achievement for the Lambda Iota chapter and signifies the quality of men this chapter has produced over the last 123 years. The members and graduate brothers of Phi Gamma Delta are consistently exuding the pillars of Friendship, Knowledge, Service, Morality, and Excellence and this goes for all alumni, not just the 12 honored.
The recognition on this list is a supreme accomplishment and honor. Purdue is home to a tremendous alumni base which includes astronauts, athletes, engineers, businessmen, and many more professions. There are so many prosperous graduates and being able to know that our chapter has contributed 12 graduate brothers to this is something that should make all of us “damn proud”. This is the legacy all graduate brothers have built and the standard our undergraduates are challenged to uphold.
Here is a short spotlight on each of the honorees:
A. University & Academic Leadership
- Arthur G. Hansen ’46 – 8th president of Purdue University and former president of Georgia Tech, who guided Purdue through major growth in the 1970s; the Arthur G. Hansen Life Sciences Research Building bears his name. Purdue Engineering
- Richard E. Grace ’51 – Longtime Purdue engineering professor and legendary FIJI faculty adviser, founding president of the Lambda Iota Graduate Corporation and key architect of the chapter’s alumni structure.
B. Space & Exploration
- Eugene A. “Gene” Cernan ’56 – NASA astronaut, commander of Apollo 17, and the last human to walk on the Moon, proudly representing Purdue – and Phi Gamma Delta – on three space missions.
C. Athletics & Purdue Spirit
- Dave Alexander ’62 – Purdue baseball alumnus who coached the Boilermakers from 1978–91, winning 407 games and later serving as an athletics administrator and MLB scout; Purdue’s Alexander Field honors his family.
- Morgan Burke ’73 – Purdue’s longest-tenured athletic director, serving from 1993–2016, known nationwide for his focus on the student-athlete experience and competitive excellence.
D. Business, Engineering & Infrastructure
- Bill Kassling ’67 – Industrial management graduate who became chairman and CEO of Wabtec Corporation, a global transportation equipment leader, and a major Krannert/Rawls Hall
- Christopher B. Burke ’77/’79/’83 – Founder and CEO of Christopher B. Burke Engineering, a nationally recognized water resources and infrastructure firm, and namesake of Purdue’s Burke Graduate Program in Civil Engineering.
- Gerald Lyles ’64 – Senior executive of Lyles Diversified and Lyles United, whose family’s philanthropy helped create the Lyles School of Civil Engineering at Purdue.
E. Media, Communication & Public Affairs
- Brian Lamb ’63 – Founder of C-SPAN and namesake of Purdue’s Brian Lamb School of Communication, honored nationally with the Presidential Medal of Freedom and National Humanities Medal.
F. Governance, Trustees & Alumni Leadership
- Thomas E. Spurgeon ’61 – Entrepreneur and longtime Purdue trustee and board chair, recognized for decades of service in guiding the university’s strategic direction.
- Timothy McGinley ’63 – Indianapolis businessman, founder of House Investments, and one of Purdue’s most influential trustees, serving roughly 20 years on the board, including a record 16 years as chair.
- Richard Joseph Rudolph ’48 – Chemistry graduate and longtime executive director of the Purdue Alumni Association, widely known as “Mr. Purdue” for strengthening alumni engagement and representing the university around the world.
These men are amongst the most successful graduates Purdue has ever had. They serve as pillars of excellence for the Purdue and Lambda Iota Community. They are models for all current undergraduate brothers to strive for. Being able to visualize the success of these individuals only helps motivate current undergraduate brothers to seek involvement, mentorship, and professional success. Please feel free to share stories or memories of these honorees for future issues. We also encourage all alumni to engage with the chapter as mentors, speakers, or internship contacts and support ongoing chapter scholarships or house projects. Our slogan is “not for college days alone”, which is truly embodied and emanated by the success of these 12 individuals.
Perge!
-Owen Schellhase PC’28