Luna Lu, a professor in the Lyles School of Civil Engineering, chatted with chemical engineering undergraduate student Rithika Athreya for the College of Engineering's new series, "Office Hours."

Luna Lu is the second Purdue Engineering professor to be featured in the "Office Hours" series.

The series offers a look into the lives of Purdue Engineering faculty, focusing on how they spend time away from the University's West Lafayette campus, what motivates them in life and much more. 

Lu was born and grew up in a mountain side town in China and was the first in her family to go to college. Her interest for engineering was sparked while she was in high school, when her father started a civil engineering construction firm. 

Now, as a Purdue professor, she has a loaded plate, as she'll become acting head of civil engineering in January, is the director of the Office of Professional Practice, is an entrepreuner with her own startup and still continues to teach. All of those roles get her juices flowing, but her face lights up with she talks about students.

“I love to talk to students,” she told Athreya. “I’m very curious about them as a human being. Who are you? What would you like to do? And how can I be of help?”

A closer look at Lu, born in a mountain side mining town in China and the first in her family to go to college, what motivates her, how she’d spend her last day on Earth and more. 

The videos publish once per month and feature professors from across the College. The full playlist can be viewed on the College of Engineering's YouTube channel.