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Idea to send: |
| Topic | "Entrepreneurship 101" Class - College/Universities Statewide |
| Content | All state universities and colleges to offer an “Entrepreneurship 101” class with identical curriculum across the state. Class credits for course would be free to all enrolled students, underwritten with private donations, most likely from businesses across state.
As part of curriculum for entrepreneurship class, every student would be required to present either a traditional business plan or an application for a Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) grant. (a competitive grant program that reserves some of federal R&D funds for funding of small business startup and development stages, with emphasis on encouraging commercialization of a technology related product or service.) According to Phillips, SBIR looks at volume of applications submitted by state, giving greater percentage of grant money to states with highest level of applicants. Independent of the quality of proposals, increased volume alone could direct more grants to the state.
A possible addendum is the creation of a web site related to the class, or to be housed within the website that the Dept. of Commerce is creating as part of the Center for Entrepreneurship created this year, that would serve as a repository for proposals being researched by college professors. |
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