Indiana University and Purdue University took the first steps Friday (Aug. 12) on a bold new vision for higher education in Indianapolis, designed to increase the number of job-ready graduates in an innovation-led economy, fuel economic growth in the region and the state, and enhance service to the Indianapolis community and beyond.

This new vision, outlined in a Memorandum of Understanding approved Friday by the IU Board of Trustees and the executive committee of Purdue's Board of Trustees, will transform the 52-year-old IUPUI -- a joint venture between the two universities on a campus IU owns and manages -- into separate academic organizations in which IU and Purdue will each govern their own programs. It calls for a more energized role for each university and the production of more graduates ready to participate in the modern economy.