Residing in the Coles College of Business is a center championing for student success. The Entrepreneurship Center, although relatively new, is the stepping stone students need to cultivate their entrepreneurial mindset.
The center offers a variety of programs to prepare students for the world of business. Student clubs, round table discussions, internships, seminars and competitions are just a few of the ways students can get involved. Programs and activities are offered on site at the university and in the Atlanta business community. Some of those which stand out are the Professional Certificate in Entrepreneurship and Entrepreneurship Fellows.
The Professional Certificate in Entrepreneurship not only provides future business owners with certification, but also with the practices needed to execute their ideas.
Entrepreneurship Fellows is the highest distinction one can attain while navigating their way through the center. These esteemed students willingly undertake the coursework, mentoring, internships, and retreats that come with this honor.
The center is composed of several different groups of people. These groups include a student advisory board, board of advisors, mentors, investors, and executive advisory council.
These groups strive to instill six values in young entrepreneurs: serve others, solve problems, create value, lead well, follow well, and break entitlement.
The skills students learn in the Entrepreneurship Center are not just temporary – they follow entrepreneurs throughout life.
“This past May, I did my final presentation for the Entrepreneurship program at KSU,” KSU alumni Coasta Genise said. “I had been thinking about the feedback I was given. One of the gentleman told me one word, and that one word made me look at everything so differently. It is incredible how one word can be so life changing.”
Genise has gone on to create “Ms Goody Two Shoes Sisterhood,” a nonprofit organization to support and encourage each other in the fight against isolation and “Coasta Mi,” an online retail store.
Christopher Hanks, founder and executive director of the KSU Entrepreneurship Center, has firsthand experience in the world of business. Hanks has launched several of his own businesses in the fields of music, publishing, e-commerce, and export. He has always aimed to educate others on the how-to’s of entrepreneurship, proven by the publication of a best-selling book on low risk entrepreneurship, which he co-wrote.
Hanks recently spoke at an interactive discussion at the Atlanta Commerce Club titled “How to Outperform Your Competition,” and the Success Summit in Athens, GA.
“The quality of your life is dependent upon the quality of your relationships,” he said, offering advice at the Success Summit this past April. “From a personal standpoint, that is obvious, but in business – my relationship with my partners, my relationship with my employees, my relationship with other people in the community, is going to affect the quality of my business. If I don’t understand that, I can’t be a better business owner.”
