For Immediate Release December, 1998
Contact: Barbara Spies Blair, 781-239-4621, [email protected]
Liz Alcock, 781-239-4549
Babson College Announces Initiatives in Entrepreneurship
Programs Enhance School's Entrepreneurial Leadership
Wellesley, MassÖBabson College in Wellesley, Mass. has announced three initiatives to reinforce the College's worldwide expertise in Entrepreneurial Leadership. Babson President Leo I. Higdon, Jr., made the announcement in a November message to the Babson Community. The initiatives include:
The Frederic C. and Jane Hamilton Entrepreneurial Scholarship Program for MBA students-a $500,000 scholarship program recognizing the entrepreneurial experience of outstanding applicants and student entrepreneurs who want to study at Babson. Babson will provide scholarships for five entering students in the Two-Year MBA program each year.
Expanded Business Development Hatchery Space for MBA student entrepreneurs-- five student enterprises will operate rent-free for a semester. Pending approval, hatchery space is renewable for subsequent contracts. Located in Babson's graduate facility, Olin Hall, hatchery space provides start-up entrepreneurs with a highly-supportive and professional environment, one where student entrepreneurs may consult and share insights with faculty and fellow students.
A Seed Capital Fund-with the support of alumni and friends of the College, Babson has made a fund of $200,000 available to recently graduated students to provide seed capital for early stage financing of their businesses. First funding awards will be presented next spring. The program is available to graduate and undergraduate students.
"Our expertise in entrepreneurial scholarship has been widely noted," said Babson's President Higdon, "These initiatives are a real commitment to enhancing and protecting our leadership position."
For more than 75 years, Babson College has recognized the importance of entrepreneurship, and has taken the lead in teaching venture creation and growth at all levels of commercial activity. The 1998 U.S. News & World Report survey of top MBA programs named Babson's F.W. Olin Graduate School of Business first in entrepreneurship for the fifth consecutive year.
The College's founder, Roger Ward Babson, was a successful entrepreneur, an adviser to six U.S. Presidents, and a visionary financier. He was an educator ahead of his time, and his entrepreneurial spirit forms the philosophical foundation of Babson College.
The College's newly-announced initiatives build on an extensive infrastructure devoted to entrepreneurship including:
-- The Arthur M. Blank Center for Entrepreneurship, a new facility dedicated Oct. 24, 1998, comprises research and office space for faculty, students, and visiting scholars; archival space for entrepreneurial research materials; exhibit space showcasing accomplishments of internationally-recognized entrepreneurial business leaders; and a 42-seat teleconference room wired for distance learning, interviews or interactive collaboration on campus or around the world. -more-
-- Student business plan competitions-for MBA students, The Douglass Foundation Entrepreneurial Prizes are presented each spring to the graduate student team that submits the most feasible business plan in start-up acquisitions, company growth, real estate development, or entrepreneurship. Winners receive a total of $10,000.
At the undergraduate level are: The John H. Muller, Jr. Business Plan Prize Competition for the Babson undergraduate individuals or teams who develop the best business plan for an entrepreneurial venture; The Shelby Cullom Davis Entrepreneurship Prize for the undergraduate student team that completes the most successful Management Consulting Field Experience (MCFE) or entrepreneurial field study project for a nonprofit organization; and The Babson Alumni Association Student Business Initiative Award for the most industrious student business owner.
-- The Babson Entrepreneurial Exchange (BEE), a student-run nonprofit organization providing support and educational services to its more than 2,000 members. BEE's Babson Entrepreneurial Review is written and edited by graduate students. Published twice a year, it includes articles, book reviews, and commentary on current entrepreneurial topics and trends.
-- Five endowed chairs in entrepreneurship. The Babson graduate school was one of the first in the U.S. to establish endowed chairs in entrepreneurship to recognize and support the highest level of excellence in the teaching and practice of entrepreneurship.
-- Outreach programs such as The Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs brings outstanding entrepreneurs to campus to share their history and philosophy; the Entrepreneurial Management Program, in conjunction with the Smaller Business Association of New England, which addresses the core management issues of fast- -more- growing ventures; the Entrepreneurial Research Consortium, which has initiated the U.S. National Panel Study of Business Start-ups; the Price-Babson College Fellows Program, a joint endeavor of Babson College and the Price Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies, which serves as a clearinghouse of information for developing entrepreneurial curricula, majors, and departments; the Babson Entrepreneurship Research Conference, the premier scholarly forum for entrepreneurial research, sponsored jointly with the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation; the National Consortium of Entrepreneurship Centers, an alliance of ten organizations dedicated to entrepreneurship education, sponsored by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.
Babson College, recognized internationally as a leader in entrepreneurial management education, grants BS and MBA degrees through its undergraduate and graduate programs, and offers executive development programs to experienced managers worldwide. Babson's degree programs are accredited by AACSB-The International Association for Management Education, and the New England Association of School s and Colleges.
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