Cashing in on Business:Entrepreneurship

Rural Community College Initiative InstituteApril 4, 2006

Presented by: Howard College1001 Birdwell Lane, Big Spring, TX 79720

(432) 264-5000www.howardcollege.edu

Entrepreneurship: What does it mean?

Global Definition- Definitions have emphasized a broad range of activities including the creation of organizations (Gartner, 1988), the carrying out of new combinations (Schumpeter, 1934), the exploration of opportunities (Kirzner, 1973), the bearing of uncertainty (Knight 1921), the bringing together of factors of production (Say, 1803)

Local Context- Entrepreneurship in a rural setting, while adhering to the standard characteristics, can have a much more obvious, poignant definition.

Profile of an Entrepreneur

• someone who organizes and assumes the risk of a business in return for the profits (Casson, Mark www.econlib.org )

• Someone who pioneers change• One who organizes, manages, and assumes the risks of

a business or enterprise (Merriam Webster Dictionary)

Rural AmericaBig Spring, TX

“Big Sky, Big Heart, Big Spring”

-History representative of a classification but unique in its character-

An Idea“There is one thing stronger than all the armies in the world, and that is

an idea whose time has come.”-Victor Hugo

“Money never starts an idea. It is always the idea that starts the money.”-Owen Laughlin

“All achievements, all earned riches, have their beginning in an idea.”-Napoleon Hill

It began as a conversation in passing…

A Partnership

RCCI-Howard College and its land-grant affiliate Texas A&M University

Texas Cooperative Extension Agency

Big Spring Area Chamber of Commerce

Moore Economic Development Corporation

Permian Basin Workforce Development Board

A Plan

The logistics…• Determining the audience• Setting the program & getting the curriculum• Assigning and requesting speakers

The marketing strategy…• A sponsored “kick-off” luncheon• Print materials and registration forms• Radio and newspaper

To Date…

• A successful “kick-off” luncheon• Attendance statistics • Future plans

Data Collection

General community “buy-in” and responsiveness

Authentic feedback from individual participants