Purdue entrepreneur, professor named to executive role
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Purdue University has a new head of industry partnerships as the school announced current civil engineering professor of Luna Lu to that role this week.
Lu will be the vice president of the Office of Industry Partnerships (OIP) and will report to the senior vice president for partnerships, the school said.
The OIP “facilitates collaboration between businesses and university faculty, staff and students to create mutually beneficial relationships that drive innovation, research and economic impact,” per Purdue.
In particular, OIP handles research partnerships, workforce development and corporate philanthropy.
“I’m equally humbled and thrilled to contribute to Purdue’s remarkable journey of discovery and collaboration,” Lu said in a news release. “Industry partnerships are at the cornerstone of many of the university’s successes in research, innovation and product creation. I look forward to working with our dedicated faculty, staff and partners to drive forward our shared mission.”
In addition to her teaching experience, Lu is also an entrepreneur. She is the founder and CEO of Wavelogix, a startup incubated at Purdue that developed a system to sense concrete strength.
The startup has secured several millions of dollars in funding this year, including a $1 million National Science Foundation grant in October.
Lu will begin her new role on Jan. 1.