Empire State opens entrepreneurs' program

CNY Business Journal (1996+), Feb 05, 1999 by L, Kim

SARATOGA--The New York Institute for Entrepreneurship is open for business at SUNY Empire State College. The purpose of the new program, which began January 11, is to provide budding entrepreneurs with the resources, knowledge, and education to succeed in today's competitive marketplace. The program will explore innovative ideas about business startup and operation and is geared to help students avoid many of the pitfalls that go with launching a small business.

"The Institute offers a competitive advantage to the small-business owner by leveraging private and public resources in support of business," says J. Felix Strevell, chair and CEO of the Institute, and New York's deputy secretary of state.

To do that, Empire State has put together a curriculum that relies on distance-learning technology using the Internet and the World Wide Web and a series of executive retreats.

The Institute was established under a $1.5-million grant acquired with the help of U.S. Rep. Gerald B.H. Solomon (R-Queensbury). The program, available to all New Yorkers, is a partnership between the state's Small Business Development Center and Empire State.

Barbara A. Drago, associate director of the Institute, states, "The Institute fits prominently within Governor George Pataki's focus to strengthen entrepreneurs and small business across the state." Drago previously held the position of director for the Small Business Advocacy Service and of the Manufacturing Extension Program at Empire State Development.

The new initiative will provide a centralized location for business persons to learn the ins and outs and the dos and don'ts of starting a business. A variety of multi-media links and a research database will be offered at the Institute to help promote small-business growth.

The stated goals of the Institute are to:

* Promote higher education through a bachelor's degree in business, with a concentration in entrepreneurship, awarded by Empire State College

* Provide regional training seminars, led by experienced business leaders

* Create career forums focusing on women's issues, family-owned and operated businesses, and other specific target groups. The forums will be designed to meet the needs of the participants and will be led by expert practitioners in relevant fields.

* Serve as a clearinghouse/library of information, including a Web site offering an unlimited source of information gathering

* Facilitate access to capital through private and public lending institutions

* Train business leaders of the future through a youth entrepreneurial program, providing junior-high and high-school students with age-appropriate materials and information on the creation of a business, from conception to reality

The Empire State College has undertaken several other initiatives to run in support of the Institute for Entrepreneurship. It launched a competency-based MBA program to offer students the opportunity to earn graduate-level credit for knowledge and experience they have gained on the job. The on-the-job knowledge is then augmented with a curriculum designed to fill in the gaps so that graduates have a solid, MBA-level knowledge of business management. Empire's programs are designed to give students the flexibility to advance their education and improve their career prospects without leaving their current jobs.

"The difference between what we offer and what other institutions offer is that their programs are almost entirely text-based learning. Ours is multi-media," adds Drago. "We involve the three senses: sight, sound, and touch."

Another program recently unveiled by the college is The International Business On-line (IBOL) resource center. The IBOL addresses two key points: the globalization of the economy and the growth of Internet-mediated distance learning. The IBOL describes the program's design as "consisting of a series of manageable links to a variety of existing Web sites, organized like modules in a textbook." The design provides easy navigability to relevant sites.

The menu lists a comprehensive array of on-line resources, including sites for business organizations, trade statistics, cross-cultural comparisons, legal and political information, exporting and importing, international business travel, and general international business references and economic information.

"Since the program began, the response has been extraordinary," says Drago. "It is still in its infancy, though. It won't actually be available for degree consideration until probably September, when we will be able to offer the actual on-line courses."

State Senate Majojrity Leader Joseph Bruno obviously sees the value in Empire's programs. He recently announced his intention to expand Empire's programs by committing an additional $2.5 million over the next five years. The additional funds will be used to create a youth entrepreneurship program for youths from elementary though high school. Empire will partner with the the Small Business Development Centers on that program as well. And on the drawing board, according to Drago, is a "bachelor's-degree-on-the-wire" program so that students can study entrepreneurship on-line or by CD-ROM.