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MUNCIE, Ind. - A new Ball State University initiative will bolster Indiana's economy by moving business ideas from inception to reality.
The Entrepreneurship Dynamics Laboratory (EDL) positions the university's nationally recognized entrepreneurship program to offer services to transform innovative ideas and projects into commercial applications and products.
"There has been an increasing awareness across Indiana that something needs to be done to add new dimensions to the state's economy," said Thomas J. Kinghorn, Ball State's vice president for business affairs and treasurer. "Promoting and facilitating entrepreneurship is a critical factor in the success we seek.
"People with ideas need sound business plans and financial backing to make it into the marketplace, and the Entrepreneurship Dynamics Laboratory will provide expertise to ensure all the factors are in place to help a business get started and succeed."
Kinghorn envisions the lab working on commercial ideas generated by Ball State's iCommunication initiative, which is developing content for new digital technologies.
Other faculty projects and economic development efforts fostered by organizations such as the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership and Delaware County's Vision 2006 are also potential sources for business ideas, said Kinghorn, who is the chairman of the technology business development initiative for Vision 2006.
The Entrepreneurship Dynamics Laboratory's creation is the result of a $1 million federal education grant awarded Feb. 14 with the sponsorship by U.S. Senators Richard Lugar and Evan
Bayh, and U.S. Rep. Mike Pence.
The lab will be directed by Donald F. Kuratko, the Stoops Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship and founding director of Ball State's entrepreneurship program.
The initiative is the next logical step in the program's celebrated 20-year history, Kuratko said.
"The lab brings the academic world to economic development," Kuratko said. "Because our students will be heavily involved, we will provide them with the best laboratory experience in the world, but this also gives fledgling businesses access to some incredible resources.
"This will be a special place where exciting things will happen," he said.
Kuratko said the lab allows for the expansion of several existing programs and the inception of others.
The project will initially include:
By Marc Ransford, Media Relations ManagerMUNCIE, Ind. - A new Ball State University initiative will bolster Indiana's economy by moving business ideas from inception to reality.
The Entrepreneurship Dynamics Laboratory (EDL) positions the university's nationally recognized entrepreneurship program to offer services to transform innovative ideas and projects into commercial applications and products.
"There has been an increasing awareness across Indiana that something needs to be done to add new dimensions to the state's economy," said Thomas J. Kinghorn, Ball State's vice president for business affairs and treasurer. "Promoting and facilitating entrepreneurship is a critical factor in the success we seek.
"People with ideas need sound business plans and financial backing to make it into the marketplace, and the Entrepreneurship Dynamics Laboratory will provide expertise to ensure all the factors are in place to help a business get started and succeed."
Kinghorn envisions the lab working on commercial ideas generated by Ball State's iCommunication initiative, which is developing content for new digital technologies.
Other faculty projects and economic development efforts fostered by organizations such as the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership and Delaware County's Vision 2006 are also potential sources for business ideas, said Kinghorn, who is the chairman of the technology business development initiative for Vision 2006.
The Entrepreneurship Dynamics Laboratory's creation is the result of a $1 million federal education grant awarded Feb. 14 with the sponsorship by U.S. Senators Richard Lugar and Evan
Bayh, and U.S. Rep. Mike Pence.
The lab will be directed by Donald F. Kuratko, the Stoops Distinguished Professor of Entrepreneurship and founding director of Ball State's entrepreneurship program.
The initiative is the next logical step in the program's celebrated 20-year history, Kuratko said.
"The lab brings the academic world to economic development," Kuratko said. "Because our students will be heavily involved, we will provide them with the best laboratory experience in the world, but this also gives fledgling businesses access to some incredible resources.
"This will be a special place where exciting things will happen," he said.
Kuratko said the lab allows for the expansion of several existing programs and the inception of others.
The project will initially include:
- Idea Accelerator Initiative - A pre-incubator program that assesses the quality of a business proposal. The Idea Accelerator is currently reviewing five business plans with the intention of funneling those with the greatest commercial promise into the Muncie Innovation Connector, a business incubator. This program will seek to review business ideas from a wider geographic area.
- Entrepreneurship Consulting Teams - Undergraduate students majoring in entrepreneurship are assigned to businesses to address a particular need or challenge the firm faces.
- MBA Business Plan Review Teams - Graduate students assist people in developing feasibility plans as part of the Idea Accelerator Initiative or Muncie Innovation Connector.
- Fast Growth Internship Program - Students are currently placed with rapid growth ventures as interns for 15 weeks. The EDL will add more students to the program.
- Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization - A student-run club that introduces undergraduates to the process of starting their own businesses.
Kuratko said additional components to the initiative may be added in the coming months, such as using Ball State faculty from various academic fields to do research within the lab, developing a student-oriented research and development project and conducting meetings between local entrepreneurs and major venture capitalists.
(NOTE TO EDITORS: For more information, contact Kinghorn at tkinghor@bsu.edu or (765) 285-1033. Kuratko may be reached at dkuratko@bsu.edu or (765) 285-9002. For more stories visit the Ball State University News Center at www.bsu.edu/news.)
