Lafayette, LA (December 2025) – The USDA’s Rural Development Grant will bring to fruition The Rural Economic Development and Innovation (REDI) Initiative. This initiative will offer small rural businesses state-of-the-art technological and expert support, ensuring both their business longevity and success.
Housed at the Louisiana Immersive Technologies Enterprise (LITE) Center and in partnership with the Louisiana Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (LEED) Center and the Office of Innovation Management (OIM) at the University of Louisiana Lafayette, this initiative will create a support center that will assist in the creation and elevation of small rural businesses. The LITE, LEED, and OIM centers will offer entrepreneurs resources including cutting-edge manufacturing technologies like 3D printers, labs for e-commerce and manufacturing, improved internet access, networking opportunities with industry leaders, and more.
Chad Lacomb, Director of UL Lafayette’s Office of Innovation Management, says, “The business world moves quickly, and without access to advanced resources and technology, innovative rural businesses risk being left behind. Thanks to the USDA Rural Development Grant, we can give them a real chance to compete.”
Lacomb, his team, and their partners believe this initiative will significantly reduce the barriers that keep many rural entrepreneurs’ ideas from becoming marketable products. By combining these components, this investment will launch local startups, attract investment, and spur job growth, transforming rural communities into hubs of creativity and economic opportunity.
The REDI initiative will kick off with a ribbon cutting at the LITE Center in the new year. More details to follow.
About the LITE Center
Louisiana Immersive Technologies Enterprise (LITE) is the world’s first and only data visualization facility created as a public/private partnership.
Located in the Research Park of the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, LITE cultivates an innovated ecosystem for economic development. Our vision is to create and collaborate with innovative thought-leaders, in turn making Lafayette the state’s premiere destination for technology-based businesses.
The Office of Innovation and Management
The Office of Innovation Management (OIM) focuses on technology collaboration, innovation, and commercialization. We enable potential partnerships between industry and the university’s various research institutes, centers, colleges, and departments. We also provide guidance to UL inventors on intellectual property protection, technology licensing, and/or the creation of start-up companies. And we encourage and broadcast learnings on innovation best practices from within the university and from external sources.
About Chad LaComb
Chad LaComb is a regional leader in innovation, economic development, and community impact with more than a decade of experience advancing major initiatives across Acadiana and Louisiana. He currently serves as Director of UL Lafayette’s Office of Innovation Management, overseeing technology transfer, intellectual property, research commercialization, and industry partnerships. His career includes significant roles in regional planning, broadband expansion, brownfields redevelopment, and major economic development projects, earning multiple national awards for innovation and community impact.
Contact Chad LaComb at chad.lacomb@louisiana.edu
About The Louisiana Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (LEED) Center
The LEED Center serves the entire state of Louisiana providing technical assistance and support to businesses and economic development agencies, entrepreneurs (students, faculty and within communities) that are not connected to economic development resources and regional commercialization efforts.
To learn more, contact Dr. Geoffrey T. Stewart atgstewart@louisiana.edu
