Executive Director, Bruce Leech
Greetings. I trust everyone had a great 4th of July. We had a special visitor near our home in Northern Michigan, as President Biden flew in to buy some cherry pies at our local farmer's market!
I know we are all anxious for a return to normal over the Summer as we return safely to work. The pandemic changed the way we work and live in very profound ways. There are many things we learned during this pandemic that we should keep in mind as we all create our new normal.
Self-Care: continue to take care of yourself. Being forced to slow down showed many how burned out they were from their crazy pace of work. It also identified what people need to feel supported and valued. We all realized a new definition for work/life balance, which we should continue to keep in mind going forward.
Vulnerability: when you’re in the middle of an important videoconference and your cat hops up on the back of your chair or the kids are yelling in the background, it’s hard not to feel a little bit vulnerable. That vulnerability can lead to connection. When you allow yourself to open up to someone else, you build stronger relationships, and we should not lose that.
Transparency: because these were crazy times, managers were more transparent, consistent, and detailed in communications with employees. We need to stick with those open communication practices as employees return to the office and as more people work remotely. Transparency will be even more important in keeping an open and honest culture.
Entrepreneurial: no matter what line of work you are in, you likely had to figure out some problem or issue over the course of the past year in true entrepreneurial fashion. We don’t often put ourselves in situations where we’re solving problems on the fly, but we had no choice during the pandemic. Don’t lose sight of your ability to solve things and make the workplace better. Embrace those creativity and innovation skills you developed during these post-pandemic times.
Tech: technology adoption accelerated during the pandemic to facilitate remote work, social distancing, and safety requirements. Collaboration platforms launched new remote capabilities and teamwork. Zoom became a verb and a way of life. Much of this technology will certainly leverage and enhance our in-person experience in the future, as we will be in the classroom and streaming this Fall.
While I would never wish a pandemic upon us again, we can now begin to look at a few of the positive things that happened in the past year and continue to embrace those things that are most important in life. I hope you all have some time to enjoy this Summer before the “new normal” hits us in the Fall!
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Come Support Our Very Own DePaul Representative!
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Pairing students with the right mentors has always been one of the top priorities at the Coleman Center. We believe that the right guidance is crucial to advancing your academic and professional goals.
The CEC Mentorship program is open to students and community members. Benefits include receiving ideas and feedback on your venture, expanding your network, and learning best practices for starting and running a business.
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Each year, the Coleman Entrepreneurship Center spotlights purpose-driven business ideas that focus on doing good and the bottom line. The annual event explores the ideas of purpose-driven startups in Chicago. The Purpose Pitch is a unique pitch session where startups pitch their greater purpose and how they plan to fulfill that purpose through their business objectives. |
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Interning as a Graduate Student During COVID-19 |
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An interview with Taeya Foster
My name is Taeya Foster (she/her), and I am currently a graduate student at DePaul in the Masters of Entrepreneurship program, looking to graduate this upcoming winter quarter! I received my undergrad degree from Illinois State University in Organizational Leadership and Financial Planning, so sadly I am not a Double Demon.
This summer I received an amazing opportunity through the CEC internship program to intern with Kimberly Weiner. She is a rock-star entrepreneur, and I am very appreciative to be assisting her in a new business venture she is trying to get off the ground very soon. I would describe my position as basically a business consultant. I am helping Kimberly with all aspects of her business from branding to merchandising and so many other things.
As crazy (or maybe not so crazy) as it sounds, COVID-19 inspired me to look for opportunities within the CEC. I entered DePaul through the thick of the outbreak, so I wasn’t properly on-boarded and exposed to all that DePaul had to offer me before applying. After finishing my first school year completely online, I decided to do my own research. With the help of a great professor, I stumbled upon the CEC, and here I am. The coordinators at the CEC did a great job at matching me with a position that fit my aspirations. I'm a person who wants a wide range of experiences packaged into one job, and that’s exactly what I got. I get to experience the HR, the operational, the marketing, as well as many other sides of running one's own business.
I would have to say the most challenging thing I’ve been faced with is establishing credibility. When starting up your own business, it’s hard to get others (potential partners and/or investors) to understand your worth and vision. Also, staying true your brand can be hard when you don’t necessarily have one fully established.
I am learning it’s okay not to have everything figured out and to seek help in the areas you may not be strong in. The most valuable thing I have learned simply comes from watching Kimberly’s attitude. Despite the frustrations we may experience with trying to get things off the ground, she still remains determined and focused. She could easily give up, but her passion to keep going and be positive is very inspiring to me.
To other students in the program or looking to join the program, I would advise everyone to be open to new opportunities. Even if the opportunity you receive doesn’t exactly match up to your life goals, get the most you can out of the experience. Also, don’t be afraid share new insights to organizations/people you intern for. You'd be surprised by how receptive people can be. As long as you put your best foot forward, I’m sure you will leave this experience feeling accomplished!
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DePaul Athletics Launches LEGACY |
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LEGACY, a comprehensive entrepreneurship and brand development program for student-athletes at DePaul University, will soon enable Blue Demon student-athletes to fully leverage Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) legislation tentatively slated to go into effect in Illinois on July 1, 2021. This pending legislation and potential NCAA rule changes would allow student-athletes to earn compensation for the use of their name, image and likeness, similar to non-student-athletes.
“As regulations around the student-athlete experience modernize, DePaul Athletics is steadfast in supporting our students to advance their personal brand, enhance their financial literacy and create yet another pathway to achieve their future goals,” said Director of Athletics DeWayne Peevy. “Nationally renowned education from DePaul’s Driehaus College of Business, College of Communication and Coleman Entrepreneurship Center coupled with the limitless opportunities the city of Chicago affords, uniquely position DePaul to make an impact. We fully embrace NIL as it supports our ‘students-first’ values and aligns with DePaul’s mission to prepare graduates to be successful in their chosen fields and agents of transformation throughout their lives.”
“The Driehaus College of Business looks forward to helping our student-athletes excel off the court as well as on it,” said Thomas Donley, interim dean of the Driehaus College of Business. “We’ll deepen their entrepreneurial and sports business skills and knowledge through tailored seminars led by our faculty experts in these fields, as well as encourage student-athletes to consider earning a business minor, a practical and marketable addition to any DePaul major.”
“The Coleman Entrepreneurship Center is thrilled to be collaborating with the DePaul Athletic Department to help our student-athletes,” said Coleman Entrepreneurship Center Executive Director Bruce Leech. “We define entrepreneurship as a skillset to be innovative and creative and also learn how to do business. We welcome the opportunity to have DePaul student-athletes involved in our experiential programs and entrepreneurship education.”
This new partnership with the DePaul’s Driehaus College of Business, College of Communication and Coleman Entrepreneurship Center positions DePaul Athletics among the nation’s first athletic departments nationwide to engage in such a robust campus collaboration.
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Are you ready to think creatively and generate new business ideas? DePaul University's nationally ranked MS in Entrepreneurship program will prepare you for the challenges of turning opportunities into thriving businesses in our ever-changing world.
#MSEDePaul
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Catalyst Conversations: DePaul's Unique Approach to Entrepreneurship |
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Q&A with Maija Renko
Professor and Coleman Chair of Entrepreneurship at DePaul University
During the COVID-19 pandemic, entrepreneurship has been critical for companies both large and small. In this issue of Catalyst Conversations, we chat with Maija Renko, Professor and Coleman Chair of Entrepreneurship at DePaul University about the school’s unique approach to entrepreneurship education—including its new MS in Entrepreneurship Program.
1. Tell us about your career path and your current role at DePaul University. What attracted you to DePaul?
I am originally from Finland, and I moved to the US to do a research exchange as a part of the doctoral degree in international business that I was pursuing in Finland. Now, over seventeen years later, it is pretty clear that my stay in the US became more than a study exchange. My interest in entrepreneurship as a research area really started to develop as soon as I moved to the US, both as a result of being guided by a business professor who had built a career in entrepreneurship, and as a result of observing significant differences in the role that entrepreneurship plays in the United States and in Finland.
After I was done with my doctoral studies, it was clear to me that I wanted to continue on the academic career path of research and teaching, and I applied widely for tenure track jobs at business schools across the country. In 2007, I started as an assistant professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago (UIC), and I was very excited about the opportunity to live in Chicago. While earning tenure at UIC, I had opportunities to work on research projects that focus on social impact of entrepreneurship, such as research projects on entrepreneurship among people with disabilities, and development of classes on social entrepreneurship.
Since 2019, I now serve as the Coleman Chair of Entrepreneurship at the Driehaus College of Business at DePaul University. Given my interest in pursuing research, teaching and service that bridges social impact and entrepreneurship, DePaul’s entrepreneurship program with its mission of doing well and doing good in business is a great match with my professional and academic interests as well as my personal values. As a researcher and educator, my focus is on how entrepreneurs build financially successful businesses that contribute to positive social change. I shed light on subjects such as crowdfunding strategies, social impact entrepreneurship, inclusive management styles, company values, leadership styles, and early-stage startup success.
2. Give us an overview of DePaul’s Coleman Entrepreneurship Center and the role it plays within the university. What opportunities does the Center create for DePaul students, faculty and alumni?
Coleman Entrepreneurship Center is the University’s entrepreneurship resource hub for all students, faculty and alumni of DePaul, regardless of their discipline or major. The Center also serves the wider entrepreneurship community in Chicago by hosting events and providing programs that are open to all. Some of the Center’s most impactful student-oriented programs include its entrepreneurship internship program and the annual student competitions, where students can showcase – and win money for – their entrepreneurial spirit. For faculty interested in pursuing entrepreneurship, the Center serves as the hub to connect for advice and external resources. We also have a faculty advisory committee, which keeps the Center closely connected with all of DePaul’s colleges and programs, well beyond its business school roots. Alumni come back to the Center to serve as inspiration for current students in our mentorship program and as classroom speakers. In fact, all of the Center’s programs, including its annual Purpose Pitch competition, are open to all DePaul alumni as well.
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On July 21st, 1871 will be hosting 'Podcasts 101: Fundamentals to Getting Started' with the founders of StudioPod. These entrepreneurs will be sharing their secrets on how to bring a podcast to life by explaining not only the technical aspects of the podcast world, but also how one should approach content and storytelling. For more information about the event and to register, click here. |
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ISTC is a member-driven nonprofit organization that cultivates technology-based economic development throughout Illinois, offering mentorship programs and startup challenges for students and entrepreneurs. All DePaul students & faculty have access to their programming and events.
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On July 22nd, 2112, a Chicago-based incubator focused entrepreneurship in film, music, and video technology, will be a hosting a Business Plan Development Workshop. The workshop aims to assist attendees in kickstarting and developing an executive summary of your business plan, as well as answering any planning questions that may surface. It will be hosted in part by Delta Wealth Advisor's Co-Founder Niko Finnigan, CFA. Learn more and register here.
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MHUB, the nation’s leading center for hardtech innovation, is hosting a virtual pitch competition designed to create more visibility for underrepresented physical product startups by connecting female founders and entrepreneurs of color with investors and industry leaders from across the country. Five startup finalists will pitch live to the mHUB community and an esteemed judging panel for recognition and cash prizes. Learn more and apply here.
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