Students in John Carroll University’s Entrepreneurship Program now have a new place to explore ideas in a flexible environment that encourages innovation. A $300,000 grant from Burton D. Morgan Foundation made the classroom project possible. It encourages creativity and collaboration in its design, furnishings, and technology. “Our goal is to empower John Carroll students to develop new concepts and be collaborative about problem solving, which will be important in their future careers,” says Jacqueline Schmidt, Ph.D., director of the minor in entrepreneurship. “Nearly 1,000 current JCU students have taken at least one course offered in our entrepreneurship program since it launched with the support of Burton D. Morgan Foundation in 2015,” Dr. Schmidt added. The program continues to grow, as more than 300 students are enrolled in 15 entrepreneurship classes available during the Fall 2017 semester. Known as the Burton D. Morgan Foundation Creativity and Entrepreneurship Classroom, the newly transformed 1,540 square foot space in John Carroll’s Grasselli Library and Breen Learning Center opened at the beginning of the 2017-18 academic year. It serves as the home for entrepreneurship classes, and is also available to other academic programs. All furniture is movable, which allows the instructor to move quickly from small group discussions to larger groups for analysis and presentations. The technology design employs state-of-the-art software that encourages students to share their thoughts and research with the class. Any John Carroll undergraduate student with a major in the University’s College of Arts and Sciences or Boler of Business is eligible to pursue the entrepreneurship program as part of their coursework. ABOUT THE ENTRENPRENEURSHIP MINOR AT JOHN CARROLL UNIVERSITY John Carroll University’s Entrepreneurship Program is grounded in the University’s values-based Jesuit education, which emphasizes critical thinking, ethics, global issues, reflection, and service to others. The entrepreneurship minor is designed to support all majors. ABOUT BURTON D. MORGAN FOUNDATION Founded in 1967, the mission of Burton D. Morgan Foundation is to champion the entrepreneurial spirit. Over the years, the Foundation’s investments have helped cultivate a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem in Northeast Ohio, expand the field of entrepreneurship education, and advance the innovative ideas of future entrepreneurs. Contact: Tonya Strong-Charles | Executive Director of Media Relations | 216.397.1958 or tstrong@jcu.edu
