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GUEST COLUMN
Entrepreneurial development –
the NC State edge
By Dr. James J. Zuiches, Vice Chancellor for Extension, Engagement and Economic Development
Can entrepreneurship education and skills be integrated into undergraduate and graduate curricula? The Kauffman Foundation thinks so and has challenged 11 universities and university systems to prepare proposals to do just that and to have a greater impact on the business, civic, and social enterprises of the community, region and state.
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Zuiches |
The Kauffman Foundation recently invited The University of North Carolina and its 16 campuses to implement innovative strategies on the campuses and to compete for $5-10 million in grants, with required matching funds. Each campus must prepare a proposal that will outline its commitments and its new educational, research, extension and economic development initiatives to embed entrepreneurship into the campus culture.
“NC State is already committed in its Entrepreneurship Education Initiative, a minor in the College of Management, and many individual courses in new products and markets, through its many technology transfer and commercialization programs, and a statewide economic development agenda and educational programs,” says Blanton Godfrey, dean of the College of Textiles and chair of the university entrepreneurship task force. “But we can do more.”
To respond to the Kauffman challenge, every college at NC State and other units involved in entrepreneurship development have identified faculty and other professionals to assess what we have in place and decide how we might amplify the culture of entrepreneurship across the campus. If entrepreneurship is another way of saying “Innovation in Action,” it is a natural progression in our commitment to innovation and its application in economic, social and civic arenas.
One of the issues is whether one can incorporate entrepreneurial thinking and skills into the general education requirements. Or is there already a close parallel? For example, are there skills common to general education and entrepreneurial education, such as leadership skills, team work and networking skills, critical inquiry and problem-solving skills, communication skills, technical competence in a specific field, ethical awareness? All of these and others would be valuable to improve products, services and processes in industry, government and non-profit sectors.
Are there ways to connect better the training in the professions, design, arts, and humanities with the creativity, innovation and risk-taking, as well as management skills, required of entrepreneurs? Answering this is one of the tasks of the team preparing the proposal.
Can the highly interactive Entrepreneurship Education Initiative – with its intense working relationships among faculty and students – be replicated for larger numbers as a major or in university wide courses? Alternatively, or additionally, should we develop undergraduate or graduate certificates in entrepreneurship?
How does civic and social entrepreneurship evolve in non-profits and all levels of government, and is it different from private sector enterprise growth and development? This and many other researchable questions could also flow from the project.
Can student internships and experiential learning through the cooperative education and other college internship programs in the Small Business and Technology Development Center (SBTDC), the Industrial Extension and Cooperative Extension Services and other programs be more attuned to entrepreneurial skill-building in partnership with businesses, non-profits and civic enterprises?
As global economic integration and competitiveness increase, should the university link the international dimension and experiences, language training and cultural education to entrepreneurship in different cultures?
Do technology transfer, incubator facilities and the Centennial Campus have a larger role to play in the entrepreneurial campus? Are there mechanisms to accelerate the process of innovation assessment and market commercialization of new technologies, processes, and services? Again, this may require both new research and models of application.
Can NC State expand its economic impact across the state through a better organization of its presence in every county utilizing its combined presence in many counties by Cooperative Extension, Industrial Extension, and SBTDC, Science House, and hundreds of research and outreach projects from every college?
The Entrepreneurship Proposal team is listed below. It is their task to propose answers to these and other questions and to develop a plan for NC State to move to the next level of entrepreneurship education, research and engagement. The NC State proposal to the UNC office is due Oct. 13.
If you have ideas and are interested in working on any of these topics, contact Dean Godfrey or any member of the task force.
Entrepreneurship
Proposal Team
College of Textiles: Blanton Godfrey, Tim Clapp; College of Management: Jon Bartley; College of Engineering: Tom Miller, Steve Walsh; College of Design: Percy Hooper; College of Education: Holly Lynn Stohl Lee; College of Natural Resources: J.B. Jett; College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences: Michael Paesler; College of Veterinary Medicine: Neil Olson; College of Agricultural and Life Sciences: Jon Brandt; College of Humanities and Social Sciences: Jonathan Ocko; Kenan Institute: Raj Narayan; NCCES: Wanda Sykes, Blake Brown; Centennial Campus: Dave Winwood; SBTDC: Mike Seibert; Provost’s Office: Katie Perry; Entrepreneur-in-Residence: Michael Zapata; Graduate School: Duane Larick, Margaret King; Research Administration: Sharlene Simon; TEC/NBCI: Angus Kingon, Ted Baker, Roger Debo; IES: Jane Albright; EEED: Ted Morris
Posted September 8, 2006
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