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The state of Louisiana and LSU are both focused on a common goal: to make Louisiana a better place to live, work, and do business. Improving the quality of life in Louisiana will call for a partnership between education and legislation focused on boosting the state’s economy. To meet this objective, Louisiana’s Department of Economic Development launched “Vision 2020,” a plan to bring more industry to the state by the year 2020. And, the National Flagship Agenda is LSU’s plan to establish the University as one of the nation’s leading research universities by the year 2010. But the two plans have more in common that one might think. Both the LSU administration and the Louisiana Department of Economic Development believe that technology is the fuel for the state’s economic engine. The two plans are using education as a vehicle to get Louisiana where it needs to be by the year 2020. LSU will play a major role in making Vision 2020 a reality. The shared belief is that learning sparks free enterprise. The state’s funded Information Technology (I.T.) initiative allowed for major technology advancements on campus a plan to do just that. The I.T. Initiative created LSU CAPITAL, a center for computation and technology. The center uses technology to advance education and research on campus. This type of innovation is exactly what Chancellor Emmert and the Department of Economic Development had in mind when planning projects that would attract industry to the state. LSU CAPITAL has already generated several economic development success stories to date. The Information Technology Apprenticeship Program pairs graduate students in technology-related fields with local start-up companies in business incubators. Industry is also pairing with researchers on LSU’s supercomputer, SuperMike. LSU CAPITAL recently hired Tom Tierney, assistant director for business relations, to facilitate more business partnerships that can drive to economic growth. “The key initiative is information technology,” said Tierney. “It’s critical to the success of the state’s economic development clusters. Louisiana has a history of bootstrapping, but this time, Louisiana has put their economic development dollars to work.” The Securities Markets Analysis Research and Trading Lab or SMART Lab, the I.T. Residential College, and the behind-the-scenes network upgrades are other examples of advancements made over the last few years. Projects like these are steps in the right direction on LSU’s quest to achieve national flagship status. The vision of LSU and the vision of the Department of Economic Development begin with innovation and entrepreneurship. LSU CAPITAL’s technology research is one way LSU is progressing towards the shared goals of the state and the University.
Contact Jennifer Hughes | LSU
University Relations Related Links The Center for Computations
& Technology (LSU CAPITAL) |
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The interesting connection between the two ambitious plans is
the emphasis on creating a culture of innovation through technology
and education. 
To turn Louisiana into one of the best states in the country,
LSU, the state’s flagship university, must raise the bar on
research and education. 
Dow Chemical Company is working with Sumanta Acharya, an LSU mechanical
engineering professor to research a more efficient way to mix chemicals.
Other high-tech improvements to LSU’s campus have helped
with the educational and research roles of Vision 2020. Besides
the world-class supercomputer that put LSU on the map in the world
of high-performance computing, LSU recently hired 
