The Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute welcomed L8, the eighth group of student residents at Lassonde Studios, for the 2023-24 academic year earlier in August. This diverse group will “live, create, launch” together in this unique building for student entrepreneurs and innovators at the University of Utah.
All students at the U are welcome at Lassonde Studios, which has events and innovation space for all students on the first floor. Only 400 are selected to live on the upper floors each year after a competitive application process. Residents are known as the “Lassonde 400.”
“I really enjoy being surrounded by like-minded people it creates an awesome environment,” said Lauren North, a member of the L8 community who plans to major in marketing with a minor in entrepreneurship. She is launching a gift-basket company focused on helping women give to other women.
Here are facts about the L8 residents:
- Over 400 residents (including residential advisors)
- 71 majors
- 35 U.S. states represented
- Top U.S states represented: Utah (224), California (53), Colorado (15), Idaho (11), Texas (10), Washington (10), Oregon (9), Nevada (8), Illinois (5), Georgia (5)
- 4 countries represented: United States, South Korea, Vietnam, Switzerland
- 174 first-year students, 155 second-year students, 46 third-year students, 29 fourth-year students, 2 graduate students
Residents are studying many of the subjects offered at the University of Utah. Other students are have undeclared majors and chose Lassonde Studios as a good place to figure out who they want to become.
Autumn Cibik is one of the new first-year students living at Lassonde Studios. She plans to major in finance with an entrepreneurship minor. She is a member of the Lassonde Founders residential scholarship program, where she hopes to launch a business.
“I highly recommend anyone to live here and to be a part of such an amazing program,” Cibik said. “I joined Lassonde Founders because of my deep interests for entrepreneurship and wanting to start my own company.”
Alon Meir is another L8 resident at Lassonde Studios. He is a mechanical engineering major with a minor in music.
“I love living at Lassonde primarily because of the Steinway grand piano in the lobby,” he said. “I’m so spoiled – not many people get to use one of those as their main practice piano.”
Resident Elle Williams is majoring in business administration and is a first-year student at the U.
“Something I would say to students thinking about living at Lassonde would be to let yourself go, strive to be uncomfortable, get involved, get out, meet people, join that club, and attend that event,” she said.
Mila Pimentel is another first-year resident majoring in entrepreneurship.
“I have loved the community atmosphere in Lassonde so far, and I’m super excited to take advantage of the opportunities for entrepreneurship here,” Pimentel said. “The move-in week was very fun. I got to see my friends from orientation and meet all the new students, which was awesome.”
Lassonde Studios has been featured by publications from around the world, including The New York Times and Fast Company, and it was named by Architectural Digest as one of the nine best university buildings in the world. Visitors have come from around the world to learn about the building and entrepreneur programs managed inside.
The Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute has received about three times the applications as there are bedrooms every year since it opened in fall 2016.
The application to live at Lassonde Studios for 2024-25 opened on Aug. 1, 2023, and the priority deadline is Jan. 9, 2024.
Learn more about Lassonde Studios and apply to live here at lassonde.utah.edu/studios.
