Chancellor’s Welcome

Welcome to IPFW 

Dear Friends and Visitors:

Welcome to Indiana University–Purdue University Fort Wayne, northeast Indiana’s most comprehensive public university.

In 1968, IPFW celebrated its first commencement by awarding degrees to 47 students. The graduates who participated in this trail-blazing event were, like any other IPFW graduates, proud to have fulfilled their goals, grateful to their mentors, and eager to begin the next stage of their lives. But they are unique in that the completion of their IPFW degrees was not only life-changing for them but also marked a milestone for the many who would follow in their footsteps.

Today, we know what those early graduates could not: nearly 50,000 other alumni have realized their dreams at IPFW in the past 45-plus years. It’s because of history-makers like those 47 original graduates that IPFW has made such great strides. We’ve become the leading institution of higher education in northeast Indiana, offering more opportunities than any other university in the region.

Consider this:

• In 1964, only about 3,000 students attended IPFW. Today, IPFW has more than 14,000 students from nearly all 50 states and more than 40 countries.
• Just one four-year degree program was offered in 1965. Today, the university offers more than 190 undergraduate and graduate programs. Students can earn bachelor’s and master's degrees, as well as a variety of certificates.
• Our athletics program started out in a high school gym. Today, we have our own athletics facility and 16 NCAA Division I sports teams. Our men's basketball games are played in the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum.
• University life has become an important contributor to the region’s cultural growth, with more than 1,500 free events on campus each year and over 100 active student organizations.
• For most of our history, IPFW students commuted to class. Today, many of them can walk from IPFW Student Housing on the Waterfield Campus over the Willis Family Bridge to the main campus.
• The IPFW campus has evolved from just one building—Kettler Hall—into a multicampus community with more than 20 buildings. Our most recent additions include the Ron Venderly Family Bridge (crossing the St. Joseph River), the John and Ruth Rhinehart Music Center, the Medical Education Center (which houses the IU School of Medicine), and the full-service Holiday Inn at IPFW and the Coliseum.
• Construction is underway on the Student Services Complex, which includes new and remodeled areas of Helmke Library, Walb Student Union, and the Gates Sports Center. When complete, the complex will link all three buildings. Work is beginning on the Keith Busse Steel Dynamics Alumni Center (which will be located across the St. Joseph River, near the Holiday Inn). Construction already started for a third campus parking structure.
• Scholarly research at IPFW has expanded greatly, with more than $25 million in grants and contracts awarded in the past six years to faculty and staff pursuing greater knowledge in their fields. The university is also home to 17 Centers of Excellence, providing expertise and resources to the community.

Thanks to visionaries—students, faculty and staff, alumni and friends, and the community—IPFW truly is a world-class institution. We remain committed to excellence in academics and research as we strive to enrich the lives of our students and the community. This is our formula for success. We plan to continue using it well into the future.

I hope you enjoy your visit to the new IPFW.edu site. Please visit our campus soon to see for yourself why IPFW is the place to be!

Michael A. Wartell, Chancellor