Contact: Jim Laird
STARKVILLE, Miss.--Josh Jeanson is the new director of the Office of Entrepreneurship and Technology Transfer at Mississippi State, effective Feb. 1.
The former associate director of OETT fills the leadership post held previously by Gerald Nelson, who is retiring later this spring.
"Gerald has done a fabulous job of bringing the university's technology transfer efforts and entrepreneurship focus together," said David Shaw, the university's vice president for research and economic development.
In 2011, MSU's Entrepreneurship Center and Office of Technology Commercialization were merged in a move designed to enhance the university's relationships with business and industry, Shaw explained.
Nelson oversaw that effort.
"I am very pleased that Gerald will be on hand to assist Josh during this new leadership transition," he added.
Prior to his promotion to associate director, Jeanson worked as a licensing associate -- identifying, protecting, marketing and licensing intellectual properties developed at the university, among other duties--for OETT. He also has been a research assistant at the land-grant institution's Geosystems Research Institute.
A native of Southaven, he holds a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering and a law degree from the University of Mississippi, as well as a master's degree in industrial systems and engineering from Mississippi State.