Anne Bastien, a longtime Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute leader and University of Utah alumna, has been named senior director, bringing nearly 16 years of experience to the institute’s next chapter.
Salt Lake City, Utah — August 25, 2026
The University of Utah’s David Eccles School of Business recently announced Anne Bastien as senior director of the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute, where she will serve alongside Executive Director Scott Holley. Bastien has nearly 16 years of experience at the institute and is a double alumna of the University of Utah, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in economics and a master’s degree 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 a single 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 of 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 nearly 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 the 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 FIRST LEGO League, serving as an operational partner for the state of Utah. Bastien was instrumental in growing the program from a handful of teams to a statewide initiative.
While Bastien was originally hired to work on that single program, she eventually became program director and switched gears to what would become Lassonde Studios, launching educational and community-oriented programs that helped lay its 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 was working with as many as 130 students at a time. Bastien’s programs were initially focused on pre-entrepreneurial and skill-building opportunities designed to attract a broad range 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.”
To continue growing, Bastien knew Lassonde’s true potential lay within its 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 particular focus and opportunity among alumni, who bring vast experience 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 approach has led to an exponential expansion of Lassonde’s programs, both in reach and variety.
Today, students from any major can try their hand at entrepreneurship through Lassonde, in whatever way makes the most sense for their situation. Participants don’t always have to be University of Utah undergraduates, either. The High School Utah Entrepreneur Challenge, for example, supports aspiring high school entrepreneurs, while alumni programming such as Lassonde for Life helps graduates stay connected to the university 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 senior director, Bastien plans not only to continue this work but to 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 the Lassonde Entrepreneur Institute — from Holley to former dean of the David Eccles School of Business Jack Brittain and founding Executive Director Troy D’Ambrosio — are visionaries whose 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.