Building on Wittenberg’s longstanding tradition of creativity and innovative thinking, the new WittEntrepreneurs program aims to develop well-rounded, out-of-the-box thinkers with the skills and experience to make a positive difference in whatever field of study they pursue. The big idea here? College students shouldn’t have to wait until after college to do great things.
by Gabrielle Antoniadis
Tom Kaplan is excited. As associate professor of management and the Ness Chair in Entrepreneurship, he is presiding over what he calls “an uncommon opportunity” for Wittenberg students. He’s talking about the new WittEntrepreneurs program, which he was brought here last year to start.
“Programs like WittCAM, WittPATH and many others here have provided great opportunities for experiential learning at Wittenberg,” he says. “WittEntrepreneurs is the natural next step.”
The program combines cutting-edge classes with a wide array of opportunities for students to put what they have learned into practice. How? For starters, students from any discipline now have the opportunity through WittEntrepreneurs to launch, operate and manage an enterprise on campus. And beginning in spring 2011, an “incubator” program will support student ventures which, if approved, may receive start-up funds from the WittEntrepreneurs program. The new classes are geared to both business and non-business majors.
Kaplan is quick to emphasize that this really is an opportunity for all students– from an art major who wants to learn how to get creations to market to a “techie” from the Geek House looking to create a new application for the iPhone. That the program is actively seeking non- business students makes it “exceptionally unique,” according to Kaplan. It is also what gets him fired up when you talk to him about the possibilities.
“Every discipline needs entrepreneurs,” he declares. “Look at any great change that is happening in any field, and you will see that they are filling needs in innovative ways.”
Beyond Business Plans
This fall, in Kaplan’s new WittSem class titled “Calling All Student Entrepreneurs: So You Want to Change the World?” he gave each of his students $10 and told them to start a business. At first, he says, they panicked. But after less than four weeks, several already had come back with $80 or $90 – an eye-opening experience for them and an example of the kind of hands-on, practical learning the program will provide.
Upperclass students will delve even further; they will have the chance to immerse themselves in the operation of an enterprise, with each wearing the many different hats it takes to be a successful entrepreneur. What’s more, all ventures will be 100 percent student- focused – what a student creates at Wittenberg, the student keeps.
“Our goal is to give students all the help we can and take nothing,” Kaplan says. “We want to help as many students get started as possible. That is what we are here to do.”
He is also adamant that the Witt- Entrepreneurs Program be financially self-sustaining. That means students will build and manage a for-profit business that will help support the program. The program’s partnership with Village Markets of Africa, founded by Jacob Schmalzle ’07, is a model of what that will look like. Schmalzle, who wrote the business plan for his fair trade business while at Wittenberg,
imports arts and crafts made by artisans in co-ops in Africa. WittEntrepreneurs will help Schmalzle take his business to the next level; students will sell, manage money and distribution, and make decisions about products. (The sharp-looking red and white beaded bracelets that many on campus are now wearing are just the initial products coming out of the partnership.) Profits from the partnership will be split three ways to benefit Village Markets, the WittEntrepreneurs program and a charitable foundation Schmalzle will be creating to benefit the Kenyan artisans.
This mixture of the classic free market approach and a social mission makes Village Markets a particularly good fit with WittEntrepreneurs. Kaplan expects to see many student ventures include a social purpose not only because it is the right thing to do, but also because it is a strong value at Wittenberg. And that gets to the heart of why Kaplan is so excited about WittEntrepreneurs.
“You can create experiences where students learn, you can create enterprises where students make money, and you can have experiences where students do something to make the world a better place, but it is not common to be able to do all three,” he says. “But that is what Wittenberg is doing here.”
In the future, Kaplan envisions these new ventures being hatched in a new space designed to match the creative and collaborative spirit of the entire program. Described as a living entrepreneurship laboratory, Kaplan hopes the space will be like nothing students have ever seen. The state- of-the-art work environment should include include an open f loor plan, flexible furniture and smart technology solutions.
Expect to see other innovative initiatives coming out of the program, including a Family Business Rising Leaders Institute, which will support current Wittenberg students and their families, alumni and local family businesses. For now, Kaplan’s energy and excitement about the program and the opportunities it will create for students is already creating momentum. Word is spreading, and students from many disciplines are expressing interest.
“I think the WittEntrepreneurs program is one of many great reasons to come to Wittenberg,” he says. “Because whatever you care about, we can help you do something about it while you are here.”