Thanks to a grant from The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, thousands of college students across the nation are getting more exposure to the world of entrepreneurship.

In 2003, the Foundation - based in Kansas City, Mo. - launched its Kauffman Campuses initiative, a $25 million grant program that gave money to eight colleges and universities. The money went toward making entrepreneurship education available to any student at these schools.

"Entrepreneurship plays such a critical role in driving our economy, accounting for more than 70 percent of the net new jobs each year," said Judith Cone, Kauffman's vice president of Entrepreneurship. "Yet, at most schools, entrepreneurship courses are available only to those in the business school. We know entrepreneurs come from all academic fields - and that's why we embarked on our Kauffman Campuses initiative. We think it's good for students, good for schools and faculty, and ultimately, good for the economy."

Sharing the money are the following eight schools: The University of Rochester in New York, Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem, Howard University in Washington D.C., Florida International University in Miami, University of Texas at El Paso, Washington University in St. Louis, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Desiree Vargas, who coordinates collegiate programs at the Kauffman Foundation, said the eight schools were chosen because they were each so different and are seen as representative models of universities and colleges throughout the country. Additionally, each school committed to matching the Kauffman grant at a minimum of $2 to $1 to enable the programs implemented to become self-sustaining over time.

At each learning institution, the goal is to get students across the entire campus involved in some sort of entrepreneurial activity.

"Some of the schools have chosen to focus more on graduate students and faculty development. Others are doing business competitions and forming student organizations," said Vargas. "The way the schools approach cross-campus entrepreneurship is really unique to each institution and we're extremely happy with the way things have turned out."

At the University of Rochester, for example, the school started something called the KEY Program, which offers selected students a fifth, tuition-free year of college for the purpose of entrepreneurial educational enrichment.

Florida International University created certificate programs in entrepreneurship at both the undergraduate and graduate levels because of the grant. More than 15 new courses were started up.

Student Enrollment Rises

The numbers already show student involvement. In the 2002-03 school year, before the grant started, there were 1,521 undergraduates enrolled in entrepreneurship courses at these schools. In 2005, that number jumped to 4,109 students.

"Small businesses are really critical," said Vargas. "One of our efforts is to increase awareness in college students the role entrepreneurship plays in their lives. We don't expect that every student is going to start their own business at age 22, but we want an understanding and consideration for its importance."

At the University of Illinois, the Kauffman grant has created opportunities for all students on campus to experience entrepreneurship through curricular and co-curricular activities, said Anthony Mendes, the executive director of the Academy for Entrepreneurial Leadership at the school.

Illinois now has 18 entrepreneurship faculty fellows teaching classes in a wide range of disciplines, including engineering, social work, fine arts, Spanish and agriculture, just to name a few.

Students also have the ability to join student entrepreneurial organizations, which have memberships of more than 400 students. Prior to this year, there were no student entrepreneur organizations on campus.

"Most importantly, for any student who has a business plan idea, there are workshops available to help them flesh out their ideas and create actual business plans, in both traditional (business) and social ventures," Mendes said.

More than 500 students and faculty have signed up for these workshops in the past year, he said. The school's business plan competition - which is now in its fifth year - has tripled in participation this year, Mendes said.

At the University of Texas-El Paso (UTEP), two new student organizations were formed that offer entrepreneurship through extracurricular activities and networking. The school also opened a Center for Hispanic Entrepreneurship.

CEDARS, the Centers for Entrepreneurial Development, Advancement, Research and Support, has brought several nationally and internationally known speakers and educators to the Texas campus. They have lectured to students, conducted faculty development workshops, advised administrators and met with community members, according to CEDARS Director Frank Hoy.

UTEP's name is becoming more prominent as a sponsor and co-sponsor of entrepreneurship-related conferences, Hoy said. The school co-sponsored the 16th International Congress on the Spirit of Entrepreneurship in Latin America in Cali, Columbia. Such activities are positioning the school as a leader in educating Hispanics, he said.

In the year prior to receiving the Kauffman grant, UTEP offered one course in entrepreneurship. Last year, 10 courses were available to students campus-wide.

"It is a rare week that some individual or unit in CEDARS does not gain media exposure as an authority or for an event, bringing community attention to the university," said Hoy.

In 2003, Howard University started the Entrepreneurial Leadership and Innovation Institute (ELI) with Kauffman funds. The focus areas are academic programs, research, business and community development and entrepreneurial thought.

In 2004, for example, ELI launched its "Entrepreneurship Boot Camp," a program of workshops and panels on how to start, manage and operate business ventures.

The boot camp is designed as a one-semester orientation program that all incoming freshmen are required to enroll in. Students listen to speakers and participate in entrepreneurial activities. The final project is a business plan and the top 10 teams will receive awards at the end of the semester.

At Washington University in St. Louis, the school's Center for Research on Innovation & Entrepreneurship awarded eight research grants to faculty members this year. Bridging legal and business issues, the school also opened the Intellectual Property and Business Formation Legal Clinic this past spring. It offers law students practical experience on intellectual property cases and also serves as a community resource for startup companies, inventors, artists and others seeking to bring their ideas and creations to market.

New programs launched

Before being awarded the Kauffman grant, entrepreneurship didn't exist at Florida International University (FIU), said Colleen Post, associate director of the Eugenio Pino & Family Global Entrepreneurship Center, which was partially formed by the grant. Among other things, the money allowed the school to create four institutes and an academy.

In 2006, four FIU professors will be chosen from the school's Kauffman Professors Competition. The selected applicants will receive up to $15,000 to foster entrepreneurial activities, research and courses within their home disciplines.

Wake Forest University launched two entrepreneurship competitions after receiving the grant and opened The University Center for Entrepreneurship in 2005. This center is a place where both undergraduate and graduate students of all majors, staff and faculty can find support to develop their ideas into new ventures.

It serves as a physical workspace for project teams and group meetings, houses an Internet lab for the development of internet and electronic commerce applications and provides informal education and resources about developing new ventures, among other things.

"It's provided incredible opportunities for faculty and students to learn more about entrepreneurship and its role in the economy," said Elizabeth Gatewood, director of the school's Office of Entrepreneurship and Liberal Arts. "Because of the grant, we've had resources to get students involved from a broad array of disciplines."

The University of North Carolina established a minor in the College of Arts and Sciences with the grant money. The goal was to get 40 students in the first year and 60 applied, said John Kasarda director of the Kenan Institute of Private Enterprise.

"The response has been overwhelming," he said. "As the minor develops, we intend to have four tracks in the minor - commercial, social, artistic and scientific entrepreneurship. Combined, we expect to have at least 200 students [enrolled] in the minor."

Five new first-year entrepreneurship seminars were offered thanks to the grant, to inspire students in other majors to go on and either minor in entrepreneurship or follow through with pursuits in their own fields.

"The Kauffman Campuses [grant] has been catalytic on the UNC campus," said Kasarda. "The money really was instrumental in bringing together a number of existing programs and stimulating a set of new programs."

Also, at the University of Rochester, a new program called the Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!) was formed to help students in junior high and high school. The year-long program educates students in a course of project-based, hands-on entrepreneurial education.

Before the grant, 10 faculty members from four different disciplines taught entrepreneurship to about 200 students, according to Rochester's William Scott Green, dean of The Center for Entrepreneurship. Thanks to the Kauffman money there are now 24 faculty members from 16 different disciplines teaching more than 400 students.

"The whole thing has been transforming," said Green. "All the deans in the university have this program in common - it's really brought us together for a common theme."

All of the Kauffman recipients were selected from 15 finalists that participated in a six-month competition. In June of 2003, each of the finalist schools was awarded a $50,000 planning grant by the Foundation to develop and submit a five-year plan to inject entrepreneurship training into their schools. Plans are under way for another round of grants, Vargas said.

For more information, go to www.kauffman.org/campuses.

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