Burton D. Morgan Center for Integrated Entrepreneurship

Hiram College believes passionately in the tradition of liberal arts education. At the same time, Hiram believes students in today’s increasingly competitive world also need skills that lead directly to success in their chosen professions and personal development.

INTEGRATED ENTREPRENEURSHIP AT HIRAM

Integrated Entrepreneurship at Hiram integrates the concepts of entrepreneurship into the liberal arts through curricular and extra-curricular activities to help students develop skills such as – critical thinking, curiosity, ethical awareness, ability to write and speak clearly, ability to draw and synthesize knowledge from diverse sources and apply to diverse uses, insight into the human experience, and a life-long love of learning.

The mission of Integrated Entrepreneurship at Hiram is to foster an expansive sense of the possible, an exploration of personal passion, an ownership of one’s ideas and actions, and a commitment to add value to one’s self and one’s community.

The vision of Integrated Entrepreneurship at Hiram is for all members of the Hiram community to explore and develop their ideas beyond the classroom and see themselves as entrepreneurs who can add value to their communities and profit from their passions.

Goal of Integrated Entrepreneurship at Hiram

to integrate the concepts of entrepreneurship into the liberal arts through curricular and extra-curricular activities to reach all students
to provide opportunities for every student to discover their true passion and to develop the mindset, skills and knowledge necessary to achieve their aspirations
to help students generate the vision and sense of connectedness necessary to challenge conventional wisdom and to discover hidden opportunities
to prepare students with the analytical and critical thinking skills to identify and to evaluate possible solutions
to help students develop the interpersonal and leadership skills through a variety of on- and off-campus activities to enable them to take the initiative to implement the chosen solution
to help students see themselves as entrepreneurs who can add value to their communities and profit from their passions.

Opportunities for Students

Hiram’s Integrated Entrepreneurship Program provides many opportunities for students to develop their entrepreneurial mindset and abilities:

The Entrepreneurship Minor
Courses Across Disciplines that Integrate Entrepreneurship
Student Run Ventures
Entrepreneurship Residential Learning Community (ERLC)
E-Internships
ideablitz ™ and ideabuild ™ pitch contests with cash prizes
HPP (High Performance Program), an Entrepreneurship Honors organization

Burton D. Morgan Foundation

The Morgan Foundation is our namesake and primary supporter.

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Timeline & History

Entrepreneurship Education Consortium

Hiram College is a member of the Entrepreneurship Education Consortium. Students can compete in regional competitions against students from the other schools. Also, the EEC shares various resources amongst its faculty and students to benefit aspiring entrepreneurs.

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BURTON D. MORGAN ENTREPRENEURSHIP CENTER

Opened in 2008, the 7,100 square foot facility is located within East Hall, one of Hiram’s newest suite-style residence halls.

The hall combines both the residential facilities and the entrepreneurship academic and co-curricular facilities in the same building, making the entrepreneurship program truly integrated into campus life.

Hiram students with a strong interest in entrepreneurship can apply to become a member of the Entrepreneurship Residential Learning Community (ERLC) and will be given preference for room assignment in East Hall. The ERLC provides a supportive environment that encourages creativity and innovation in the pursuit of entrepreneurial interests.

Made possible through a generous grant from the Burton D. Morgan Foundation, the Center honors Burton D. Morgan, a successful entrepreneur, who started or helped to start dozens of businesses during his lifetime.

The facility features The Forum, a state-of-the-art 50 plus seat lecture hall with video conferencing capabilities, as well as dedicated entrepreneurship classrooms and common areas.

Websites

Discover Business – Top MBA Degree Rankings
Comprehensive Guide to Starting a Business
Annuity.org
Annuity.org strives to provide small businesses and entrepreneurs with information that relates to their financial well-being.
istart.org
An organization designed to “help student competitors sharpen their focus and bring their entrepreneurial ideas to life beyond the classroom.”
The Kauffman Foundation
Provides grants in the areas of Entrepreneurship, Innovation, Education, and Research and Policy in order to service their mission of creating “a society of economically independent individuals who are engaged citizens, contributing to the improvement of their communities.”
The Entrepreneurship MBA
Information about pursuing advanced degrees in Entrepreneurship.
Cleverism
Cleverism provides in-depth guides on how to start and grow companies; for example: how to write a business plan (https://www.cleverism.com/write-good-business-plan/?): how to pitch to investors; how to recruit key talent.
Credit Card Insider – Business Credit Card Resources
Starting a business can be complicated and expensive. Business credit is a different type of credit than personal credit, and needs to be built up in different ways. There are different requirements to meet, and different credit reporting agencies to deal with. Visit Credit Card Insider to find a guide for small businesses to help them better understand business credit.
Expertise.com
In the current business environment having a website is a necessity for entrepreneurs, small businesses, home-based businesses, and anybody selling products or services. Regardless of what marketing methods that are employed, enabling potential customers to either find you through a Google search or learn more about you is key to creating and developing new customers. In fact, studies show consumers are looking for more than just basic information when searching online or on maps, but also expect to find other information – such as business hours – and photos easily. According to research conducted by Google, consumers are 38% more likely to visit and 29% more likely to consider purchasing from businesses with more complete listings.
Debt.org
Debt.org strives to give small businesses a wealth of information on a broad range of topics related to their financial well-being. It offers information on how to handle tax delays, how to make pay roll, how to separate business and personal finances and numerous other pages of helpful information.