Kayla Meisner is the Blazer winner in the Ecosystem Builder category for KY Inno's inaugural Fire Awards. To read more about the other Blazer winners, click here.
While the pandemic created many issues for higher education institutions, it actually brought some benefits to the launch of Kentucky Commercialization Venture’s fellowship program.
The Innovation Fellowship program was Executive Director Kayla Meisner’s passion project, and it welcomed its inaugural class in March of this year.
“The Covid launch was an advantage for us because we do serve from Murray State to Eastern Kentucky,” Meisner said. “I think that those first two years gave us precedents to meet with everyone virtually and have these conversations.”
KCV has established an Innovation Fellowship program designed to equip the next generation of ecosystem builders with the practical skills necessary to lead the translation of Kentucky’s most innovative solutions to the real-world market.
During the two-month pilot program, the fellows received proven frameworks, resources and networking opportunities to create a hands-on, customized and integrated educational experience focused on commercialization.
KCV is the statewide engine for commercialization of faculty or student ideas.
“Tech transfer has been around for 40 years, and I like to say KCV is the newest generation of that,” Meisner said. “Traditionally, tech transfer is only housed within large research institutions, not comprehensive ‘Teach First’ institutions. So, this is a totally new way of doing things.”
Here's more from Meisner in a Q&A:
What is your vision for KCV in the coming years?
I would love for us to be on the national scale and showing other states how to adopt this model. When there are these shared services across this umbrella, now everyone gets more chances, everyone gets more opportunities.
We are truly a grassroots effort and that way that what we give to Eastern Kentucky might not look the same as it does to Western Kentucky, or to Kentucky State — [but] they all still can work in harmony together. And we have the ability to be so flexible, because we’re serving all of these multi-institutions.
What is Kentucky’s greatest advantage when it comes to innovation/technology/startups? Its biggest weakness?
Our biggest advantage — and I’m biased as a young Black woman as well — but I think it’s the diversity. Through KCV, traveling throughout the state, there’s so many different types of people, types of ideas, types of problems. And we always say we believe Kentucky ideas will solve Kentucky problems.
I think our weakness is, and this is always discussed, is lack of capital, lack of money. I tell people it is frankly true that you cannot do much without much money. More money brings more opportunities. And so that’s why going after grants and things like that are so important.
Who inspires you?
My go-to big inspiration has always been Oprah. When I was in second grade and you have to do your first research paper, mine was on Oprah. And it was just, you know, the ultimate underdog story, and really leading with empathy and leading with impact and always recognizing who you are.
Locally, it’s hard. I think people like Natalia Bishop (founder of Story and Level Up), you know, just Black and Brown people or women leaders because I think that they face so much adversity.
Have you noticed changes in the ecosystem? If so, what?
I think general hopefulness. I think people are finally starting to see successes that look like them or that inspire them to be like, “Oh, this is really happening.” When we initially started KCV, people were like, “Oh, there’s been things like this in the past. We’ll see how long y’all last.”
But I think being proactive, trying to be revenue building, trying to create national partnerships, really flying our flag high has really created a lot of trust in us as an organization.
How do you think Kentucky can best build on the momentum it’s had in recent years?
I think things are building organically and now it’s time for us all to just be really intentional about that. So, you know, in every space that I operate in, I try never to recreate the wheel and try always to leverage other people. I think the more people involved the more success you have.
For me, it is continuing to make connections, to build community, to build community around entrepreneurship and make people feel like they can be an entrepreneur. It doesn’t mean that you’re a CEO; it doesn’t mean you’re a startup founder; it doesn’t mean that you’re an inventor. It means that you are an innovator, you are someone who pushes things forward who always seeks progress.
Other finalists in the Ecosystem Builder category:
Ian McClure
UK (Lexington, Kentucky)
Ian McClure, University of Kentucky associate vice president for research, innovation and economic impact and executive director of UK Innovate, was integral in the creation of the Kentucky Intellectual Property Alliance in 2022. He also joined the National Advisory Council on Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and stepped in as the chair of AUTM, a nonprofit to educate, promote and inspire professionals to support the development of academic research that changes the world and drives innovation forward.
Monica Bilak
Sprocket (Paducah, Kentucky)
After leading GroWest, Western Kentucky’s innovation hub, Bilak opened Sprocket, a nonprofit organization that’s working to build Paducah, Kentucky’s entrepreneurial and tech ecosystem. This year, the nonprofit launched West Kentucky Tech Incubator program, which offered entrepreneurs expertise, support and technical tools to develop software prototypes and test customer and business model assumptions.
Dave Christopher
Russell Technology Business Incubator (Louisville)
Dave Christopher, founder and executive director of AMPED, established the Russell Technology Business Incubator in 2021. The year-long program, which pairs participants with business coaches, graduated 31 entrepreneurs last year, and has another 35 in the process.
Geoff Marrietta
Invest 606 (Eastern Kentucky)
Geoff Marrietta founded Invest 606, a business accelerator for Eastern Kentucky entrepreneurs, in 2019. The program, which has partners, including University of the Cumberlands, the James Graham Brown Foundation and the Foundation for Appalachian Kentucky, awarded $30,000 in prizes this spring during a pitch competition that featured 13 finalists.
