Trump nominates Purdue engineering dean for Commerce undersecretary post
Dean Arvind Raman would oversee National Institute of Standards and Technology. Plus, Sen. Spencer Deery looks at reviving IEDC oversight legislation after audit.
Arvind Raman, Purdue’s engineering dean, has been nominated as an undersecretary of Commerce for standards and technology, selected by President Donald Trump to lead the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
The nomination was posted Oct. 2, setting up Raman for confirmation hearings with the U.S. Senate Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. A timeline for that confirmation process wasn’t immediately clear.
Raman, who has been Purdue’s engineering dean since 2023, said he didn’t have a comment at this point, “other than to simply say that I am honored by the nomination.”
If confirmed, he would replace Laurie Locascio, a President Joe Biden appointee who left that role in January leading the federal science agency. NIST’s responsibilities deal technical standard, including a range of work in cybersecurity, AI, microelectronics, materials and more.
The agency also takes in administration of the Commerce Department’s CHIPS and Science Act – legislation that has been part of Purdue’s role in recruiting SK hynix to land a $3.87 billion R&D and advanced chip packaging facility at the Purdue Research Park in West Lafayette.
Raman earned a master’s degree in mechanical engineering in 1994 before getting a doctorate from the University of California-Berkeley in 1999. He returned to Purdue to teach. He moved into administration in 2014, according to a profile done by Purdue, and was appointed dean in February 2023 to replace Mung Chiang, who started as Purdue president a month earlier.
One twist: According to Purdue’s bio, Raman led the proposal that won a USAID research competition, which brought a five-year, $70 million in funding – touted as the largest award in Purdue Engineering history – for LASER PULSE. An acronym for an array of USAID-funded work called Long-term Assistance and Services for Research-Partners for University-Led Solutions Engine, the center aimed research-driven solutions to development challenges in underdeveloped, USAID partner countries. The project was scrapped earlier in 2025 in a purge of federal funding, with Trump calling it out: “Seventy million dollars for a center at Purdue to research university-sourced, evidence-based solutions to developmental challenges. … I mean, these are massive numbers on things that nobody ever heard about.”
As dean, Raman leads engineering programs that include roughly 30% of Purdue’s undergraduate students.
Wednesday afternoon, Purdue Provost Patrick Wolfe sent a memo to university staff saying that Raman would “remain in his current Purdue role until such time as his confirmation is finalized and he is set to begin his new role in the spring.”
“Purdue is proud when our faculty and leaders are sought for public service, and we eagerly support such opportunities,” Wolfe wrote. “This is an Undersecretary role in Commerce which requires confirmation in the months ahead — the precise timing of which is uncertain.”
Wolfe said once the confirmation process is over, Purdue would name an interim dean and launch a national search for the next engineering dean.
MORE FALLOUT FROM THE IEDC AUDIT
Last week, a 127-page report stemming from an audit of the Indiana Economic Development Corp. highlighted millions of dollars in questionable spending, deals and travel tied lax oversight and conflicts of interest tied to the quasi-public agency’s work with state funds between 2022 and 2024. (From the Indianapolis Star last week: “Undisclosed conflicts, contracts with donors, lavish travel: What the IEDC audit found.”
Developments and reactions continue to spill out.
SEN. DEERY READY TO REVIVE IEDC OVERSIGHT BILL: A year ago, state Sen. Spencer Deery, a West Lafayette Republican, didn’t get far with Senate Bill 251, which called for changing the structure and oversight of the IEDC amid mounting criticism about transparency and spending by the agency. A bit driver at the time was residual frustration over an IEDC plan, since scuttled, to build a pipeline from western Tippecanoe County to feed water to massive developments in the LEAP District 35 miles away, in and around Lebanon.
Among the proposals in Deery’s bill: Establish an IEDC ombudsman within the State Board of Accounts, with complete access to all IEDC board meetings and materials and could use them to make recommendations to the General Assembly or conduct investigations into the operations of IEDC; adding two non-voting legislators on the IEDC’s board; establishing a database to make it easier for taxpayers to track the activity, expenses and returns of the IEDC; requiring the IEDC to notify a county if it buys large amounts of land for a real estate development; and requiring the IEDC to offset any plans that would negatively affect electric, gas or water utility rates.
This week, Deery recounted the building distrust of the IEDC, dating to a June 2023 forum at the Tippecanoe County Fairground Coliseum, when sketchy details of a $2 billion LEAP pipeline started to come to light. That night, IEDC officials did not come to explain. At the time, Deery called it arrogance. He repeated that this week.
From that June 2023 forum:
“IEDC’s arrogance in not showing up to that meeting to explain themselves or hear our concerns was the last straw for me,” Deery said in a social media thread posted Monday. “It’s good to see the tent growing with Hoosiers who recognize the problem and are ready to find solutions.”
Is Deery ready to try again with a bill during the 2026 General Assembly session?
“It’s very likely,” Deery told BiL this week. “Last year, the request from the executive branch was for more time to conduct their audits and identify the problem areas so that they could find the right solutions. SB251 is my proposal. It may not fix every problem and there may be better ideas we can develop, but I believe it’s a solid bill we can build from. In short, if the administration or my colleagues come forward with something better, I will stand down, but if not, I will keep pushing for SB251’s requirements for more transparency, more focus on (return on investment), and the creation of an IEDC ombudsman that can provide more oversight.”
BOONE COUNTY PRESERVATION GROUP LEADERS CALL FOR NEXT STEPS: Brian Daggy and Jim Love, who led a fight against the IEDC’s land-buying for the LEAP District, wrote an op-ed this saying that the audit won’t mean much if Gov. Mike Braun and other Statehouse leaders just put it on a shelf. From that piece:
“Hoosiers deserve more than platitudes, conflicts of interest and unbid contracts. We deserve leaders who answer to the people, not to a select circle of insiders with the right connections. Unfortunately, the unfolding scandal at the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) proves yet again that when politics, money, and power collide, it is everyday Hoosiers who are left footing the bill.
“The recent revelations about ‘The Three Kings’ — former IEDC executive Dave Roberts, Purdue Research Foundation President Chad Pittman, and former advisor to Gov. Mitch Daniels, Paul Mitchell — should concern every taxpayer in Indiana. Over six years, entities tied to these men collected more than $180 million in taxpayer-funded grants and no-bid contracts. These weren’t isolated missteps. They were patterns of behavior, aided and abetted by a quasi-public state agency that operated in secrecy and with little accountability.
“Let us be clear: while Gov. Mike Braun’s audit may have reportedly found ‘no criminal activity,” that is hardly a stamp of integrity. Ethical impropriety does not need to rise to the level of criminality in order to erode public trust. Rules were clearly bent, disclosures were kept behind closed doors, and oversight was bypassed. Ordinary citizens know that if you break the rules, there are consequences. Yet when politicians or their allies do it, the refrain is always the same: ‘Mistakes were made, but let’s move on.’
“We reject that.
“What message does it send if those responsible are allowed to continue cashing in on state contracts? Is the message that corruption is acceptable as long as you wear a suit and call it economic development? A factory worker who cut corners would be fired. A farmer who failed to meet reporting requirements would lose subsidies. But insiders with access to millions in public funds are excused with a shrug. That double standard is corrosive to democracy. These findings need to be referred to the Inspector General and an investigation launched.”
For more, the full piece is here in the Indiana Capital Chronicle: “When leaders fail to lead, Hoosiers pay the price.”
THE GOVERNOR’S TAKE THIS WEEK: Via a WISH-TV report: “Gov. Mike Braun on Tuesday said he’s satisfied with a recent audit of the IEDC but he’s OK with lawmakers launching their own review. The governor’s comments follow calls by Democrats for a legislative probe of the Indiana Economic Development Corp. and for new transparency legislation surrounding IEDC donors. … Braun said he’s happy with the results of the audit. He said his administration is already working on fixes but he would be “quite alright” with the legislature making its own changes in its oversight capacity if they feel it is necessary. He said he doesn’t believe auditors stopped short.” For more: “Gov. Braun not opposed to legislative probe of economic development.”
MORE REVELATIONS OUT OF THE IEDC AUDIT: Indianapolis Star reporter Hayleigh Colombo had more on inside dealing: “An Indianapolis development company with close ties to former Indiana Secretary of Commerce Brad Chambers received more than $77 million through no-bid Indiana Economic Development Corp. contracts for its work developing the LEAP district. The recent audit of the IEDC — which uncovered a pattern of undisclosed conflicts of interest, lavish taxpayer-funded travel and no-bid contracts — revealed that Pure Development was one of the top recipients of IEDC funds between 2022 and 2024, a time period that significantly overlaps with most of Chambers’ tenure as Indiana’s top economic development official.” Read the rest here: “Millions in no-bid contracts went to company with close ties to former IEDC head Brad Chambers.”
THIS AND THAT/OTHER READS …
Indiana Capital Chronicle reported Wednesday that Vice President JD Vance is expected in Indiana this week to continue the White House push to get the General Assembly to redistrict congressional seats ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Read more here: “VP Vance to visit Indiana Friday to meet with Senate GOP amid redistricting standoff.”
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I am making a from scratch tomato sauce and finishing a eulogy to be delivered in the coming days. My note here is for everyone to keep up on the news, stay engaged, but make tomato sauce when that's what your heart needs.
What the greedy “ red “ pigs want ALL the congressional seats now! And what will that cost us to redistrict again? The devil’s assistant needs to stay out of our state - and what is this trip costing us for fuel and security, etc?