Professor Jim Forney Retires After 36 Years
Professor Jim Forney retired in October of 2024 after 36 years at Purdue. During that time, he has worn many hats; Department Head, Adjunct Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at IU School of Medicine, and director of our REU summer research program, to name a few.
Jim’s excellence in the classroom has been celebrated by his students throughout the years and has been recognized by Jim’s induction into the Purdue Book of Great Teachers and his receipt of the IU School of Medicine 2022 Trustee Teaching Award.
As an Emeritus Professor, Jim continues to contribute to the Department in a variety of ways, including regularly coming in and contributing to the research efforts of the laboratory of Professor Mark Hall.
Jim was kind enough to share the following about a new fund established to provide biochemistry students with financial support summer research.
Full-time summer experience can be transformative for students. Some of my most successful undergraduate research students were not the top classroom performers, but they discovered unique strengths that allowed them to flourish in the lab. From 2012 to 2024, I secured funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) program to support summer internships in Biochemistry labs, and I enjoyed serving as director. NSF guidelines, however, required that most of the support go to students from other institutions.
The Forney-Boles fund is currently a small step, not yet large enough to fully fund a summer stipend, but one I hope will grow. Unburdened by coursework in the summer, students become part of a community, they share knowledge, read literature, and solve problems. Nanci and I were fortunate to have the resources to start this fund. Our faculty will continue to dedicate their time and grant funds to support undergraduate students during the academic year and the summer, but offering additional full-time summer opportunities to talented young scientists will have long-term positive impacts for our students, the Department of Biochemistry, and the future of science. ~Jim Forney
Support the Janet I. Forney and Robert M. Boles Biochemistry Endowment
You can support summer research experiences through a gift to the Department of Biochemistry. Be sure to specify the Forney-Boles fund
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