Inadequate funding portends an uncertain future for Pennington

A financial report delivered to the state Board of Regents last fall by the Pennington Biomedical Research Center suggests the 25-year-old institution is facing serious financial challenges—including no money to open and operate two new buildings and a third being refurbished on its 234-acre Perkins Road campus. “We’re doing very well on one level. But [financially] it’s like a cliff. … At some point we’re going to plummet,” says Executive Director Dr. Steven Heymsfield. The recent financial woes have served as a wake-up call for officials at Pennington, and they’re now scrambling to find solutions. Along with a rebranding effort and a new marketing campaign, they’re seeking out new industry partners and trying to create synergy with research programs. “We have to be more entrepreneurial, more businesslike,” says LSU System President John Lombardi. “Other places in the world do that and have developed that, and they started out like us. The only question for us is, do we have enough time?” Read the complete cover story by Senior Editor Stephanie Riegel in the new issue of Business Report here.