Andy J. Maas, Vice President for Research, Office of Innovation and Ecosystem Development, Louisiana State University
Andrew J. Maass, associate vice chancellor for research at Louisiana State University’s Office of Innovation and Ecosystem Development, received the Outstanding Contribution to Advancing Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Higher Education Award at the 2024 Deshpande Symposium on Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Higher Education.
This important award recognises individuals who have demonstrated exceptional achievement in entrepreneurship and innovation in higher education. The Deshpande Symposium on Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Higher Education is one of the world’s premier conferences on innovation strategies in higher education.
Maas’ contributions include leading Louisiana’s successful application to win the largest and most competitive grant of $160 million over 10 years through the National Science Foundation’s ENGINE program. LSU’s winning team, Future Use of Energy in Louisiana (FUEL), includes more than 50 public and private organizations to help Louisiana lead the global energy transition toward more efficient carbon management and new ways of producing and using energy. The team’s goal is to develop an inclusive and dynamic workforce and decarbonization technologies.
“Andy’s work has helped raise the profile of Louisiana State University as one of the nation’s leading research universities,” said Louisiana State University President William F. Tate IV. “The FUEL team is harnessing the intellectual capital of Louisiana’s brightest minds to improve the lives of Louisianans and the world.”
At LSU, Maass oversees the Innovation & Ecosystem Development Office and was instrumental in overhauling the office and establishing it into a single office in 2022. The office is responsible for the LSU Innovation Park, the LSU Small Business Development Center, the LSU Innovation & Technology Commercialization Office, the LSU NSF I-Corps program, and several other programs and initiatives focused on founding, developing and growing technology-based startups. LSU Innovation Park currently has approximately 40 tenants, and the LSU Innovation & Technology Commercialization Office is led by tech transfer veteran Spencer Rogers.
As the man responsible for establishing LSU first as an NSF I-Corps site and then as part of a regional hub of eight universities, Maass has had a profound impact on the LSU and Baton Rouge entrepreneurial ecosystem. Maass and his LSU team work tirelessly to convince LSU faculty to see their discoveries as potential commercial products, opportunities and economic drivers.
“Andy’s efforts have helped distinguish LSU as a leader in research and innovation,” said Robert Twilley, LSU vice chancellor for research and economic development. “The growing number of patents granted to our faculty not only brings useful solutions to the world, but also helps attract talented faculty and students to LSU — leaders who want to study at a university that strongly supports discovery.”
“I cannot help but acknowledge the tremendous support that Louisiana State University has given to our incredible team, who work hard every day to help our faculty disseminate their discoveries beyond the university and improve the lives of Louisianans and people around the world. It’s truly a team effort,” Maass said.
About the Deshpande Symposium
Co-founded in 2012 by the Deshpande Foundation and the University of Massachusetts Lowell, the Deshpande Symposium on Innovation and Entrepreneurship in Higher Education brings together scholars, policymakers, and practitioners to discuss best practices for integrating entrepreneurship across the university community. This year marks the second year that VentureWell has led the symposium’s program vision and operational management. More information about the symposium and the awards can be found here.
About the LSU Office of Innovation and Ecosystem Development
LSU Innovation consolidates the university’s innovation and commercialization resources into one office, maximizing LSU’s impact on intellectual, economic and social development in Louisiana and beyond. LSU Innovation focuses on the creation, development and growth of technology-based start-ups. LSU Innovation oversees the LSU Innovation Park, a 200-acre business incubator that fosters early-stage technology companies, and the Innovation & Technology Commercialization Office, which streamlines the process of evaluating, protecting and licensing intellectual property created by LSU researchers. LSU Innovation serves as the host organization for the Louisiana Small Business Development Center Network, which oversees all SBDC services statewide and the LSU SBDC, which provides free consulting services to small businesses statewide. LSU Innovation helps Louisiana technology companies apply for seed funding through the federal Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer grant programs. LSU Innovation educates faculty, students and the community in the principles of entrepreneurship through the National Science Foundation’s Innovation Corps (I-Corps) program. The program trains innovators to consider market opportunities for pressing scientific questions, leading to increased funding for state and federal grant programs as well as potential industry partners and licensees.
