Joe Tort (right) is the new director of the Office of Professional Practice. (Pictured with Arvind Raman, the John A. Edwardson Dean of the College of Engineering.)

Joe Tort is a doer and champion for students, armed with knowledge that comes through a higher education graduate degree, determined to execute initiatives based on strategic thinking with the students’ best interests at heart.

That experience, passion and dedication to empower and equip students combined with a commitment to excellence and innovative and strategic efforts has helped the Office of Professional Practice (OPP) gain national recognition and increase Purdue University’s reputation.

And, now, Joe Tort is leading the office.

Tort was named director on March 1, replacing civil engineering professor Phillip Dunston, who had held the director role since April 2023.

“Sometimes I joke about this like it was my dream as a child to be in university administration,” Tort said, referencing his master’s degree in student affairs. “I think when you get into administration, you want to find ways to increase your impact. Moving into the director’s role allows me to have greater influence on university policy, as I have a seat at the table within engineering leadership meetings and at university-level meetings related to career preparation and industry partnerships. That’s useful to increase impact.

“It’s a big honor to be here at Purdue doing this. We’ve got a very long history of co-op, almost 75 years. Nationally, we are seen as a leading institution for professional practice. To carry forward and put my stamp on what so many others have built is exciting.”

When Dunston accepted the role as Dean’s Faculty Fellow for Undergraduate Transfer Pathways, the decision to elevate Tort was clear.

In prior roles as managing director, associate director and assistant director of the global programs, Tort had the pulse on OPP’s offerings for years. Now, he has the title to show for that intimate involvement.

“I’ve had the opportunity to be at the forefront in developing most of our new programs as well as the enhancements we have made to our flagship programs,” Tort said. “I’ve been involved with the implementation and am keenly aware of the processes needed to execute and continually improve programs. I think having a detailed knowledge of how things get done, of all the partners we have, serves me well. Having direct experience in the day-to-day operations helps me better understand the needs of the staff. I know exactly the frustrations they may be feeling, which provides me with the empathy necessary to help the staff meet our goals.”

Whether it was establishing the first-of-its-kind Global Engineering Alliance for Research and Education (GEARE) in 2003; continuing the 75-year history of the Cooperative (Co-op) Program; expanding industry partnerships to provide more options for internships; spearheading relationships with startups for Interns for Indiana (IFI); creating unique industry knowledge certificates; extending reach to Silicon Valley by hiring a full-time staff member there; or broadening classroom opportunities, OPP has been a foundational office in the creation of groundbreaking, work-integrated learning programs at Purdue University.

The impact has been obvious in the numbers the team has been able to produce: nearly 8,000 students served through its programs, including more than 1,300 Co-op work terms and nearly 3,000 internship work terms with students gaining experience across 48 states and 20 countries, and more than 450 new employer partners created in 2025-26. The effort helped Purdue rise from No. 13 to No. 6 in the U.S. News & World Report’s co-op and internship rankings.

“We are motivated to help Purdue reach No. 1,” Tort said.

But not all of OPP’s impact is quantifiable.

'Develop the whole person'

Tort is known for supporting students, whether in helping make connections for work experiences or, even, supporting nominations for major awards. OPP had a pair of connected students who were selected as Purdue Engineering Fellows in 2023-24 (middle: Zach Logar and Rithika Athreya). 

Tort’s vision always has been to put students at the forefront. Not just about getting them hired — which, of course, OPP is a key cog in making those connections — but the mission also is about developing future leaders in industry.

Through OPP’s programs, students develop technical, professional and interpersonal skills through incredible domestic and global experiences. Scaffolding being developed around the experiences is bringing more value to the students, allowing them to better communicate what they achieved while connecting the experience to future career development. The data collected from the experience is helping to improve training for students focused on both professional and interpersonal communication. It’s important to Tort that OPP also helps “develop the whole person.”

“I want Purdue to be thought of as the place to go if you want to develop professionally,” Tort said. “You’re going to soar to high heights if you come to Purdue and participate in programs like the Co-op Program, GEARE or our industry specific certificate programs.

“The future for OPP will be about how do we impact all students in the College of Engineering, not just those participating in our programs. I will be looking forward to working with many colleagues throughout the college to enhance tools and opportunities for student career development. There are endless opportunities we can go after — and so many more really highly impactful ways we can engage students.”

Tort will lead that charge — and not just by directing the ever-growing OPP staff to do so.

Throughout his time in OPP, Tort has shown a unique ability to connect with students on a personal level. He’s someone who goes the extra mile for students, whether it’s jumping on a call with an employer to make a connection, scouring the world for potential new industry partners, enabling a paid co-op to meet the dire financial needs of a student or connecting with a supportive mentor in industry.

Tort’s connections run deep — because he intentionally fosters them.

He co-led two study abroad trips to Ireland and Belgium in 2023 and 2024 partly to explore new partners for GEARE and made sure the students maximized their experience by personalizing the approach for each while also enlisting each academic and industry partner for support.

“I believe his inner motivation for helping people is at the core of his success as a leader in the (college) and the university as a whole,” one nominator wrote about Tort for the college’s Staff Long-Term Impact Award, which he won in 2024.

At last year’s Industrial Roundtable — the Purdue Engineering Student Council-led career fair that is one of the nation’s largest student-run fairs — Tort walked around Memorial Mall to greet employers. Colleague Jenny Strickland was with him. She was struck by how often he was recognized and greeted.

“Every single place we go, even around the world, someone knows Joe,” said Strickland, whom Tort hired at OPP in 2020. “His empathy and communication show his character, and his enthusiasm for advancing the College of Engineering shines through in his outreach efforts.”

Tort (far right) is at home at Industrial Roundtable, one of the largest student-run career fairs in the country. Jenny Strickland (second from left) counted how many people greeted Tort at IR in 2025: It was in the double-digits.