US Midwest

 

 

BRADLEY UNIVERSITY

Turner Center for Entrepreneurship

Foster College of Business Administration

www.bradley.edu/turnercenter

Roger Luman, Managing Director

 

Established in 2001 by a gift from Robert and Carolyn Turner, the Turner Center for Entrepreneurship builds on Bradley University’s Foster College of Business Administration’s historic strength in small business administration and family business.  For over 30 years, the Foster College of Business Administration has provided business training and technical assistance to start-up and existing businesses by offering counseling and training programs.  The creation of the Turner Center brings together education, research and related programs and services to help entrepreneurs create more successful businesses.

 

Major in Entrepreneurship

 

The Foster College of Business Administration offers a growing program in Entrepreneurship.  Over 75 students have selected Entrepreneurship as their primary field of study.  The Entrepreneurship program was recently ranked in the top 10 among schools with an entrepreneurship emphasis.

 

Courses

 

Six courses are required for the Entrepreneurship major in addition to the business core and general education courses.  These are:

 

BMA 382                    Entrepreneurship

BMA 383                    Small Business Management

BMA 384                    Entrepreneurial Finance

 Or ATG 204               Cost Accounting

BMA 356                    Human Resource Management

MTG 381                    Integrated Marketing Communications

 Or MTG 393              Retailing

 Or MTG 410              Services Marketing

ECO 335                     Managerial Economics

 Or ECO 310               Labor Problems

 

Two of the following:

BMA 385                    Technology Entrepreneurship

BMA 357                    Leadership and Interpersonal Behavior

BMA 488                    Internship in Entrepreneurship

BMA 489                    Topics in Entrepreneurship                

 

Consulting Opportunities

 

Entrepreneurship students will join those of other business majors during their senior year to be part of consulting teams that provide assistance to small businesses in the central Illinois area.  Annually, approximately 60 projects are completed by these student teams.  While most of the projects are completed in one semester, those selected for international marketing research projects require two semesters to develop an international marketing plan for the clients.

 

Outreach

 

The Turner Center includes the Small Business Development Center, International Trade Center, NAFTA Opportunity Center, and the Business and Industry Data Center.  Collectively, these centers provide non-credit education and training courses, business and technical assistance to entrepreneurs who are interested in starting/owning their own business as well as owners and managers of existing small businesses.  Additionally, the Turner Center serves as a regional entrepreneurship center for the Illinois Entrepreneurship Network. 

 

The Turner Center is one of the key partners in Peoria NEXT, a collaboration of public and private institutions to facilitate entrepreneurial development.  Collectively, we sponsor bi-monthly NEXT Steps, which is an opportunity for new ventures to present their business plans in search of funding, and NOVUS, an entrepreneurial networking group that also meets bi-monthly. 

 

Other Activities

 

In addition to the required courses in entrepreneurship-related courses, students are encouraged to join CEO (The Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization).  CEO provides opportunities for students to learn more about entrepreneurship outside of class.  The members of the Bradley chapter of the national CEO can hear guest speakers, play entrepreneurship simulation games, and start student run businesses.  Funding from an alum provides all Entrepreneurship majors with subscriptions to entrepreneurship magazines, a business plan software, and an expenses paid trip to the national CEO meeting.

 

Students now have the opportunity to compete in a business plan competition underwritten by a local entrepreneur/venture capitalist.  The most recent competition awarded the winning team $10,000 plus assistance from local entrepreneurs.

 

Faculty

 

The entrepreneurship education program is coordinated by Dr. Fred L. Fry, Turner Chair of Entrepreneurship.  Other faculty who teach courses in the Entrepreneurship major include:

 

Dr. Eden Blair, Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship

Dr. Paul Stephens, Associate Professor of Management

Kenneth Klotz, Director of the Small Business Development Center

Dr. Mark Brown, Assistant Professor of Management

Other management and marketing faculty

 

For more information on the Entrepreneurship major, go to the Foster College of Business Administration's website or e-mail Dr. Fred L. Fry at ffry@bradley.edu.