Tag: Louisiana businesses

National Awards Highlight South Louisiana’s Impact

Businesses and nonprofit organizations across South Louisiana were recently recognized with national awards for professional excellence, innovation, and community impact, with honors announced across New Orleans and Baton Rouge. As per this article from Nola.com, these recognitions reflected achievements in higher education, healthcare leadership, law, the arts, and civic development, highlighting the region’s growing influence at both the state and national levels. These honors, awarded by respected national organizations and industry publications, underscored how institutions and leaders in Louisiana continued to shape conversations far beyond the state’s borders.

In New Orleans, national attention turned toward Tulane University, where biomedical engineering professor J. Quincy Brown was named a 2025 fellow by the National Academy of Inventors. The recognition reflected Brown’s work developing MAGIC-SCAN, a technology designed to provide surgeons with immediate confirmation after cancer surgery that all malignant tissue had been successfully removed. Brown served as the inaugural Mark and Diana Tipton Endowed Professor in Tulane’s School of Science and Engineering and had
accumulated 27 patents over the course of his career. His work also extended beyond academia through the co-founding of Instapath Inc., a cancer imaging company focused on translating laboratory research into real-world medical applications.

Leadership in healthcare was also recognized with national awards when Modern Healthcare magazine named Pete November, president and chief executive officer of Ochsner Health, among the 100 Most Influential People in Healthcare of 2025. November assumed the CEO role in 2022 after holding several senior leadership positions within Ochsner, including executive vice president of digital
health, chief financial officer, and chief administrative officer. The recognition highlighted his role in guiding one of the region’s largest healthcare systems through a period of technological expansion, operational growth, and evolving patient care demands.

The New Orleans events and tourism sector earned additional accolades as the Eventex Awards named Elaine Williams, chief commercial officer for the New Orleans Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, to its 2025 Eventex Powerlist of the 50 Most Influential Venue Professionals worldwide. The convention center also received recognition from ConventionSouth magazine, which named the facility among 35 Louisiana winners of its annual Reader’s Choice Awards.
Together, the honors reflected the convention center’s continued importance to Louisiana’s hospitality industry and its role in attracting large-scale events to the region.

Several national awards and professional distinctions were announced across healthcare and the legal field. The American College of Healthcare Executives named Jomel Whittington, president of the AVALA Physician Network, as a fellow, placing him among fewer than 8,700 healthcare executives nationwide to hold the designation. Meanwhile, the Louisiana Bar Foundation announced its 2025 distinguished honorees ahead of its 40th anniversary gala. Judge Dana Douglas of the Fifth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals was selected as distinguished jurist of the year, while Michael
Patterson of Long Law Firm was named distinguished attorney. Monica Hof Wallace of Loyola University New Orleans was recognized as distinguished professor, and retired Judge Freddie Pitcher received the Calogero Justice Award.

In Baton Rouge, recognition spanned education, healthcare, entertainment, and innovation. The Louisiana Association of Student Financial Aid Administrators named Brittany Terrio, director of financial aid at River Parishes Community College, as its 2025 Woman of the Year. Terrio was honored during the organization’s conference in November and was also elected as its second
vice president, reflecting her leadership and service within Louisiana’s higher education community.

Community-focused initiatives were also highlighted when Louisiana Healthcare Connections awarded a total of $12,000 in grants to six organizations working to build healthier communities. Grant recipients included The Walls Project, Team Capables, WeHelpNOLA, The Highland Center, Hellfighters West Monroe LA Unit, and Gifted Smiles. The funding supported a range of projects aimed at improving access to services, promoting wellness, and strengthening neighborhoods across Louisiana.

Taken together, these honors reflected the depth and diversity of talent across South Louisiana.From medical research and healthcare leadership to legal service, higher education, and the arts, the recognitions demonstrated how institutions and professionals in the region continued to influence innovation, leadership, and community development on a national scale.

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New Orleans Natives Launch Fund to Back Southern Startups

When Corridor Ventures opened its doors in New Orleans in 2022, the firm had a clear mission: to bridge the startup funding gap that had long hindered Southern entrepreneurs, according to this interview feature from Nola.com. Founded by Kwamena Aidoo and Kelli Saulny, both natives of New Orleans, the firm quickly became a champion for early-stage founders in fields ranging from health and climate solutions to technology and hospitality startups.

Aidoo, who had built a career in finance and private equity, brought extensive expertise to the table. Before returning home, he co-founded Cannon Capital, a $100 million fund, and worked at leading investment firms in New York. Saulny, meanwhile, had developed a strong background in business growth and nonprofit support. She played a role in expanding Carol’s Daughter, the beauty brand later acquired by L’Oréal, and contributed her skills at Camelback Ventures, an organization dedicated to supporting women and minority founders. Together, the pair created a firm that would provide not only financial backing — typically up to $500,000 — but also mentorship, networking opportunities, and strategic guidance.

The decision to base Corridor Ventures in New Orleans was a deliberate one. Along with their partners Jarrett Cohen and Adrian Mendez, both Aidoo and Saulny wanted to invest in the region they called home. They recognized that while cities such as Atlanta, Raleigh-Durham, Birmingham, and Tampa showed an abundance of entrepreneurial talent, founders in these areas often lacked access to the financial resources available in hubs like Silicon Valley. By centering operations in Louisiana, Corridor positioned itself to support startups that might otherwise remain unseen.

Saulny emphasized that her return to New Orleans revealed both opportunities and challenges. She noted that Southern founders were often tackling issues rooted in their own communities, such as water management, cultural innovation, and health systems. These entrepreneurs demonstrated unique insight and urgency, yet too often their ideas stalled due to insufficient capital or limited networks. Corridor Ventures sought to provide the missing piece, offering both investment and practical guidance to help promising companies grow.

Among their early portfolio successes were Ingest, a restaurant technology company that expanded from under $300,000 in annual revenue to over $2.5 million, and Obatala Sciences, a biotechnology firm developing alternatives to animal testing. These examples underscored the growth possibilities that emerge when local talent gains access to meaningful funding. In 2025, the firm began raising a flagship $30 million fund and had already secured $3.5 million in commitments, including institutional support.

Corridor Ventures has also positioned itself as a leader in fostering diversity within entrepreneurship. Saulny explained that diversity in their portfolio was not the result of formal mandates but rather the natural outcome of their broad networks and Southern roots. Because the firm works closely with founders across varied communities, their investments reflect the region’s full range of talent. Aidoo added that avoiding the trap of backing the same types of entrepreneurs repeatedly was not only an obligation but also a competitive advantage.

Looking ahead, both founders highlighted the need for stronger collaboration within Louisiana’s entrepreneurial ecosystem and startups. Organizations such as Idea Village, Momentum Fund, and Nexus Louisiana have started coordinating efforts, but additional local investment remains necessary. Aidoo stressed that too much of the state’s wealth continues to bypass startups in favor of private deals, limiting the flow of capital into innovative ventures. Shifting even a fraction of those resources toward early-stage businesses could transform the regional funding pipeline.

The story of Corridor Ventures highlights the evolving landscape of Southern innovation. By investing in overlooked founders and anchoring their work in New Orleans, Aidoo and Saulny have shown that transformative companies can thrive outside the coasts. Their efforts demonstrate that when capital meets local talent, the South has the potential to become a formidable force in the national startup economy.

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