Throughout the past five months, Baton Rouge has seen its entrepreneurial potential skyrocket with the addition of numerous businesses, many of which are owned and operated by University students and alumni.
The Red Stick proudly boasts local and national business ties with companies that seek to help students with their wardrobe, help the local homeless and offer inventive options for lighting, among other things.
Ties to the South, a local bow tie company run by a University alum and current student, took off this semester and is seeing an incredible demand for its collegiate and seasonal-themed neckwear.
Hit Lights, an LED lighting company that works with University students, is operating in the Louisiana Business and Technology Center and continues to offer customers inventive and colorful illuminating options.
Blanket for Blanket, a for-profit company based in Los Angeles, Calif., teamed up with the University to create LSU-themed blankets that guarantee the donation of one blanket to the area homeless for every blanket sold.
Triumph Kitchen, a nonprofit run by a local chef and his wife, will welcome its first class of at-risk youth into its cooking and mentoring program this January.
In addition to the small business boom, the city announced some new traditions and accomplishments.
Mayor-President Kip Holden implemented a new event for the new year called Red Stick Revelry, a New Year’s Eve celebration downtown. He hopes to make this event one for the books by showing Louisianans the capital city’s potential to celebrate.
Also, the city continues to boast its success in obtaining another star-studded lineup for next summer’s Bayou Country Superfest.
Aside from new local businesses and events, Louisiana received numerous rankings, some good and some bad.
Louisiana was ranked the worst state for women in a nationwide analysis entitled “The State of Women in America.” However, the August issue of Entrepreneur magazine recognized Baton Rouge as one of five new entrepreneurial hot spots in the United States.
The country as a whole saw low rankings by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, such as a 16 out of 23 ranking of industrialized countries in literacy and 21 out of 23 in numeracy. The U.S. ranked 17 out of 19 in the problem solving in technology rich environments test.
Moreover, Louisiana is predicted to enter a period of economic brightness during the next two years, and for the first time ever, the state will likely surpass the 2 million employment mark.
University students can look forward to seeing big name artists perform on campus thanks to a new entertainment company, Platform, which already hosted Mutemath last month at the Union Theater.
The Acadian Village Shopping Center opened up two months ago and boasts a variety of local and national store chains like Trader Joe’s and La Divina.
Not only did the city itself see a lot of changes these past five months, but the University did as well.
The UREC released all of its renderings, which include a lazy river, a mind and body studio and larger weight rooms with more workout equipment.
While the UREC is seeing positive change, the University’s College of Art and Design students haven’t been so fortunate.
A concrete panel from the ceiling of the ceramics studio crashed on the floor last week, closing the building indefinitely. Repairs to the art studios have been on the capital outlay budget since 1999, and faculty and students aren’t expecting construction to happen any time soon.
On the other hand, University architecture students proved the possibility of sustainability in their major by furnishing the UREC with upcycled plastic bottles, washing machines and bike tires.
From August to December, the University and Baton Rouge saw a great deal of change, both positive and negative as students and residents adapt to the changing economic and University demands.