The Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute, a top-5 ranked program at the University of Utah, awarded $394,500 in scholarships to 125 students for the 2022-23 academic year as of today. The scholarships come with the opportunity to gain leadership skills and experience while managing many activities for aspiring entrepreneurs.
Find a complete list of scholarship recipients below. They range from undergraduate to graduate students and come from many different majors across campus.
“We are extremely impressed by this year’s group of student leaders and scholarship recipients,” said Anne Bastien, program director at the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute. “These students are an invaluable part of our program, and we are excited to see what they accomplish this year and in the years to come.”
All incoming and current students at the University of Utah are welcome to apply for scholarships from the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute. The priority application deadline to apply for scholarships for the 2023-24 academic year is Jan. 9, 2023. Students who miss the priority deadline can apply at any time, and applications will be considered when opportunities are available.
Students receiving scholarships also serve as student leaders. They manage a broad variety of programs at the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute, ranging from workshops and mentor sessions to a makerspace and high school outreach program.
“Our students have the unique experience of managing our many programs and opportunities while also receiving support for their educations,” Bastien said. “They are what make the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute programming come to life. Whether they are showing students how to use our 3-D printers or awarding grants to fellow student entrepreneurs, they are receiving meaningful experiences that will help them prepare for the future.”
Michael Sager, who is from Granbury, Texas, is one of the students who received a scholarship from the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute this year. He is an MBA student at the David Eccles School of Business, where he is also in the master of science in business analytics program. At Lassonde, Sager is a co-director of the Get Seeded grant program.
“I love working with young entrepreneurs and helping coach, mentor, and foster opportunities,” Sager said. “It is a symbiotic relationship. As I pass along my knowledge and experiences, I learn something from every entrepreneur I work with.”
Cynthia Wang is a recipient of the Launch Your Imagination – Kylie B. Park Memorial Scholarship. She is from South Jordan, Utah, and is studying computer science and quantitative analysis of markets and organizations. Wang is a leader in the Lassonde Workshops program, where she hosts workshops and other activities at Lassonde Studios.
“I love being a student leader at Lassonde because it provides a great opportunity to learn and grow,” she said. “I’ve been able to get hands-on experience being a leader and have met so many intelligent and hard-working individuals.”
Grace Tidwell is a scholarship recipient from Heber, Utah, and is studying psychology and marketing. As a student leader, Tidwell manages Lassonde’s business plan and idea competitions, including the Utah Entrepreneur Challenge.
“Lassonde is special because it allows students to learn by experience, make mistakes, and accomplish big goals through the support and entrepreneurial resources that we have access to,” she said. “I love having the opportunity to gain new skills that I’ll be able to transfer to any team I work with in the future.”
Gaurav Mishra also received a scholarship this year. He is studying economics and biology and is from Idaho Falls, Idaho. Mishra currently serves as the director of the Company Launch program at Lassonde.
“Coaching and mentoring driven students looking to make a change in their community is the most rewarding aspect of being a student leader at Lassonde Studios,” he said. “Seeing the passion of students taking every opportunity they have to grow their knowledge motivates me to do whatever I can to provide them with support.”
Other recipients of named scholarships include Makayla Milord and Oluwafemi Akolade, recipients of the Cameron Russell Williams Legacy Scholarship; and Lauren Hash and Diona Irwin, recipients of the Erin Valenti Women in Entrepreneurship Scholarship.
The Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute is an interdisciplinary division of the David Eccles School of Business. The institute provides many programs and opportunities for all students on campus to launch a company, build a product or join a team. Most programs are provided at Lassonde Studios.
Learn more about scholarship opportunities at lassonde.utah.edu/leadership. Learn more about the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute at lassonde.utah.edu.
Lassonde 2022-23 Scholarship Recipients
Here are the Lassonde student leaders and scholarship recipients for 2022-23. They are listed by program or program group and then alphabetically by last name:
Company Launch
- Lauren Hash
- Gaurav Mishra
- Sai Neeraj
Competitions
- Sadie Bowen
- Niha Garikapati
- Alex Louisot
- Nathan Privari
- Grace Tidwell
- Grace Wunder
Entrepreneur Club
- Derek Che
- Logan Cook
- James Linton
Get Seeded
- Nicolo Bagli
- Ghasmin Guillen
- Jeremie Oliver
- Gerald Pharin
- Michael Sager
- Lia Summers
Hours with Experts
- Gabriel DeAngelis
- Ryan Hamby
- Vi Nguyen
Lassonde Ambassadors & Mentors
- Vyana Dang
- Evan Dennis
- Nichole Duckering
- Chloe Flach
- Jonathan Fnu
- Sofya Gavrilina
- Major Nelson
- Brianna Nevarez
- Elisib Parades
- Garrett Petersen
- Brielle Spencer
- Ashley Thai
- Kaeden Warnberg-Lemm
- Dorothy Yeh
Lassonde Founders
- Vivek Anandh
- Sean Andrews
- Rowan Block
- Collin Brown
- Barry Carta
- John Carter
- Abigail Cheney
- Gregory Chiaradonna
- Reilly Curry
- Alyssa Dominguez
- Nicole Duckering
- Juliette Dueffert
- Lynzi Hallett
- Noelle Kieffer
- Brendan Kraft
- Tiffany Lahey
- Isabella Lambert
- Matthew Lebrecht
- Darin Lo Pinedo
- Tagisaina Malili
- Kaden Meza
- Makayla Milord
- Alexander Moran
- Sydney Nelson
- Brianna Nevarez
- Kaitlyn Oliva
- Forbes Painter
- Erick Palmquist
- Makayla Pickering
- Nathan Privari
- Thomas Rash
- Braeden Riley
- Katherine Rose
- Jay Selznick
- Tori Semick
- Adrian Sucahyo
- Kaeden Warnberg-Lemm
- Justin Weiss
- Isaac White
Lassonde New Venture Development
- Micah Adams
- Oluwafemi Akolade
- Azur Azapagic
- Shreya Chawla
- Patrick DiPasquale
- James Drake
- Aubert L’Espérance
- Kyle LaPlant
- Troy McIntire
- Julia Myhre
- Andrew “Drew” Nelson
- Brian Parker
- Preston Rawlings
- Dolly Sah
- Jared Smith
- Austin Stack
- Scott Stoermer
- Arnulfo Tunon-Ortiz
- Jake Van Wagoner
- Makenzie Weishaar
Make
- Sadie Bowen
- Julien Buss
- Toshiro Davis
- Jackson Dean
- Marcella Fisher
- Cole Hadlock
- Johnny Hernandez
- Tren Hirshi
- Diona Irwin
- Ainu Kaufusi
- Zach Lin
- Tyler Luu
- Derek Martin
- Justin Newkirk
- Clarissa Seebohm
- Gabriel Sherman
- Hailey Sherman
- Aiden Somerset Lee
- Phoinix Staser
- Cole Taylor
- Nicholas Tenaglia
Master of Business Creation Agency
- Jenna Henderson
- Alexa Hurtado Angeles
- Ella James
- Kailee Jade Jenson
- Olivia Lemmon
- Jack Maley
- Mac Murphy
- Justine Nguyen
- Kylie Thompson
- Calianne Timothy
- Julina Tuiesiena
Skills
- Kelsey Hart
- Lauren Lay
- Lydia Meow
- Cynthia Wang
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, innovation programs, graduate seminars, 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.
