The University of Utah’s David Eccles School of Business announced Anne Bastien as the senior director of the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute, serving alongside executive director Scott Holley, recently. Bastien has nearly 16 years of experience at the institute and is a double alum of the University of Utah, where she earned her Bachelor of Science in economics and a master’s in business administration.
“We are proud to promote Anne and recognize her years of exceptional service to the entrepreneurial community,” Holley said. “She brings a passion and commitment to seeing student entrepreneurs grow as founders and, more importantly, as people. We look forward to her leading the next chapter of the institute’s growth with these qualities.”
Holley said her appointment comes at an important time, as the institute celebrates its 25th anniversary since Pierre Lassonde founded it as one program in 2001. “Anne has been an important part of the institute’s rise to a global leader in entrepreneurship education, and this appointment positions her to be a leader to envision the next 25 years.”
Bastien brings a love for entrepreneurship that goes back to her childhood. “I was raised by entrepreneurs in a small, family business,” she said. “Looking back at it, that has been my throughline, and I feel it will be lifelong.”
Her appointment comes after two decades at the University of Utah. She started her career at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts, where she worked with students, employees and community to manage operations and the visitor experience. “I found a love of working with university students there,” she said.
Bastien’s next career step was at Lassonde in 2010, when the institute was still a center. She began in a youth education and innovation outreach role, where her first major project was with the FIRST (For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology) LEGO League as an operational partner for the state of Utah. Bastien was instrumental in growing the program from a handful of teams to the entire state.
While Bastien was originally onboarded to work on that single program, over time she received a title change to program director and switched gears to what would become Lassonde Studios, launching various educational and community-oriented programs that served as the foundation.
“We were laying groundwork, activating the space and community,” she said. “It was so exciting to roll up my sleeves and jump into what was being built.”
Bastien oversaw a portfolio of student programs, working with student leaders and designing learning and growth opportunities. That number quickly expanded – at one point, she could be working with up to 130 students at a time. Bastien’s program additions were pre-entrepreneurial and skill-based to attract a variety of students.
“Before, offerings were oriented around business plans and students that already identified as founders or aspiring CEOs,” she said. “It’s important to have programs like that, and we always will, but it has been rewarding to create programming that helps entrepreneurship feel more accessible to more students on campus.”
However, to grow, Bastien knew Lassonde’s true potential lies within the community. “It has been a joy to work with our alumni, mentors, stakeholders and donors who support our work at the University of Utah and the greater ecosystem.
Bastien said there is a special focus and opportunity within alumni, who have vast experiences to draw upon.
“Scott Holley is one such alum,” she said. “It has been an honor to work with him – after being a founding student leader, he became a go-to volunteer with Lassonde in many programs, and I can’t wait to continue the effort together in his role as executive director.”
This mindset caused truly exponential broadening of programs, both in reach and variety.
Today, students of any major can try their hand at entrepreneurship through Lassonde, in whatever way makes the most sense for their situation. In fact, participants don’t always have to be undergraduates at the University of Utah: High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge supports high school rising entrepreneurs, for example, and alumni programming like Lassonde for Life helps graduates stay connected both to the school and their entrepreneurial goals.
“Managing the expansion for our programs to follow a whole life cycle, high school through alumni, has been incredibly rewarding,” she said.
The best parts of Bastien’s roles at Lassonde so far have been these “dreaming” and “building” phases. As a senior director, Bastien plans to not just continue this work, but do what she does best: grow.
“The real draw of this position was the opportunity to work with students and aspiring entrepreneurs, to contribute to the entrepreneurial ecosystem and fabric of our economy here in Salt Lake and the Intermountain West,” she said.
Bastien said the leaders and team members of Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute, everyone from Holley to former dean of the David Eccles School of Business, Jack Brittain, and founding executive director of the institute, Troy D’Ambrosio. She said they are visionaries, and it’s their examples she plans to build upon.
“We’re doubling down on the student transformation mission, complementing any University of Utah degree and adding value for all students engaged in our programming,” she said. “If a student interacts with Lassonde, we want to not only help them practice entrepreneurial skills and leadership skills but help them leave university with new capacity and the ability to land the job, start the business or otherwise take their next step.”
Learn more about the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute at lassonde.utah.edu. Connect with Anne Bastien on LinkedIn @AnneBastien.
About the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute
The Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute is a nationally ranked hub for student entrepreneurship and innovation at the University of Utah and an interdisciplinary division of the David Eccles School of Business. The first programs were offered in 2001, through the vision and support of Pierre Lassonde, an alumnus of the Eccles School and successful mining entrepreneur. The institute now provides opportunities for thousands of students to learn about entrepreneurship and innovation. Programs include workshops, networking events, business-plan competitions, startup support, graduate and alumni programs, scholarships, community outreach and more. All programs are open to students from any academic major or background. The Lassonde Institute also manages Lassonde Studios, a five-story innovation space and housing facility for all students. Learn more at lassonde.utah.edu.
