Purdue College of Pharmacy

NIH Fireside Chat: Liberty as an Engine for Science

Wed, 2/18/2026 2:00 p.m.-Wed, 2/18/2026 2:50 p.m.

Purdue will welcome Dr. Jay Bhattacharya, director of the National Institutes of Health, for a fireside chat presented in conjunction with the university’s yearlong America250 celebration. Christopher Yeomans, the Justin S. Morrill Dean of Purdue’s College of Liberal Arts, will moderate the talk with Bhattacharya, who took the helm as 18th director of the federal agency in April. Titled “Liberty as an Engine for Science,” the discussion is at 2-2:50 p.m. Wednesday in Stewart Center’s Fowler Hall. The talk is free and open to the public.

A graphic poster titled “Fireside Chat” with the subtitle “Liberty as an Engine for Science.” It shows headshots of two speakers — Jay Bhattacharya, MD, PhD, Director at the National Institutes of Health, and Chris Yeomans, PhD, Justin S. Morrill Dean of Liberal Arts — on a dark background. To the right, event details list “Wednesday, February 18, Fowler Hall, Stewart Center, 2–2:50 PM” and note it as a “Civics Literacy Approved Event.” Purdue University’s logo and a “Celebrating America 250” emblem appear at the bottom right.