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Thuy Tu majored in journalism and architecture at Benson Polytechnic High School and earned her degree in civil engineering from the University of Portland. An internship with the city of Gresham during college taught her that she didn鈥檛 want to work in the public sector; another internship with David Evans & Associates showed her the private sector was a better fit.

Over two decades she gained experience in transportation and transit planning, urban planning, capital improvement projects and environmental planning. When she started her own company, her dream was to bridge that gap between engineering, transportation and architecture.

鈥淭hese disciplines are typically very siloed and don鈥檛 integrate well, but I didn鈥檛 want to just be an engineer so I got into environmental planning,鈥� Tu said. 鈥淚f you put in a road, what are the environmental impacts? And my journalism background helps when I鈥檓 writing environmental impact statements.鈥�

As a consultant, she provides services that integrate project management, public involvement and government policy. Kristin Greene, managing principal at Cogan Owens Greene, complemented Tu鈥檚 鈥渦nique skill in integrating considerations of community, economy, natural and built environment together.鈥�

In a letter supporting Tu鈥檚 nomination, Greene noted that Tu鈥檚 personal experience of growing up near Southeast 82^nd Avenue proved invaluable when they partnered with ODOT on the Avenue of Roses Project. Tu, who also speaks Vietnamese, helped Greene鈥檚 firm refine the survey methodology and interview approach with local residents.

鈥淏eing bicultural, and having advanced interview skills, she was able to obtain transportation and land-use guidance from business owners of many immigrant-owned businesses,鈥� Greene wrote, adding Tu鈥檚 community outreach helped improve the response rate and diversity of the responses.

Tim Smith, a principal at SERA Architects, co-taught the UO design studio with Tu and said in his nomination letter that she serves as a role model for young women and people of diverse cultures seeking careers in technical fields who also want to make a difference in their communities.

鈥淢y students benefitted greatly from her point of view and her day-to-day example of what it means to be a practicing woman and minority professional,鈥� Smith wrote. 鈥淪he is now bringing her mentoring skills to a new role as an instructor at the University of Portland, where she will be teaching community resiliency this fall.鈥�