Future entrepreneurs are at University today

A grant from the most distinguished name in entrepreneurship education will help move Bowling Green from entrepreneurial upstart to startup authority.

The $50,000 award from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation of Kansas City, Mo., will expand the entrepreneurship program at BGSU to include an undergraduate minor. Plans also include establishing a center for entrepreneurship that would provide training and other programs as an outreach to the business community.

The foundation, established in the mid-1960s by the late entrepreneur and philanthropist Ewing Marion Kauffman, works with partners to encourage entrepreneurship across America and improve the education of children and youth.

“Tomorrow’s entrepreneurs are in the labs and classrooms of colleges today,” said Carl Schramm, president and CEO of the Kauffman Foundation, when announcing the grant. “We believe college campuses are an ideal place to reach future entrepreneurs, those leaders who, through their ideas and innovations, will continue to fuel our economy.”

Out of more than 300 proposals submitted, BGSU was one of 52 colleges and universities chosen to receive funding. Each recipient must match the award..

Bowling Green’s proposal impressed the foundation because of how quickly and innovatively the University’s program was developed, said Tony Mendes, director of initiatives in college entrepreneurship for the Kauffman Foundation. “We liked how Bowling Green is attempting to open entrepreneurship to all students who are interested, not just business students,” he said.

The grant for BGSU will go toward faculty and curriculum development and teaching of courses for the minor in entrepreneurship.
Nancy Merritt, marketing and associate dean for undergraduate studies in the College of Business Administration, noted that an introductory course in entrepreneurship was first offered at BGSU last fall, an entrepreneurial finance course is offered this semester, and an entrepreneurial leadership and teams course will be offered this summer. The goal is for students to be able to graduate with the minor by spring 2004.

After benchmarking numerous recognized national entrepreneurship programs, the college established a program that will help “non-business students to get the business background to be successful in entrepreneurial ventures,” Merritt said. The research found most entrepreneurs do not graduate with business degrees.

At the same time, the exposure to entrepreneurs—whether as speakers, employers offering internships, mentors or possibly teachers—should help business majors become more innovative and imaginative, she said, adding, “in business, we need to bring out more of that creative side.”

Availability of entrepreneurial training to non-business majors will aid BGSU’s recruitment of such students, as well as job placement of some of the many graduates who go to work for businesses or organizations that are startups, Merritt predicted.

In essence, the minor allows students in all curricular areas to pursue their passion while receiving a fundamental knowledge of business techniques. Receiving a grant from the Kauffman Foundation “provides a tremendous amount of credibility” to the program, noted Timothy Koder, director of major gifts in the Office of Development.

“We’re going to work very hard to demonstrate to the Kauffman Foundation that this initial investment was quite worthwhile,” added James McFillen, associate dean of graduate studies in business.