Going out on one's own may be a little less lonely for aspiring business owners now that Howard Community College is starting several initiatives to help people develop entrepreneurial skills.
Noncredit training opportunities should be available this summer, and a class in entrepreneurship for credit is to begin in the fall. A Web site pulling together resources from the college, county and region is expected before the end of the year and an associate's degree in entrepreneurship is in the works for 2005.
The programs represent "a whole mind shift ... from a wager-earner mentality to an entrepreneurial mentality," said Jeffrey Agnor, a Columbia attorney who co-chaired an HCC task force on developing entrepreneurs.
"Traditionally, the education system has failed the entrepreneurial type," he said. "[Schools] have not groomed these talents."
The task force -- part of the school's Commission on the Future -- said in its report that workers no longer expect safety and stability in their jobs. More young people are considering alternatives to traditional four-year college plans, and adults dissatisfied or displaced by traditional corporations are looking for different business opportunities.
The group laid out recommendations for the college last year. The school staff spent the next year developing a plan, which got a significant jump-start this month from a $100,000 pledge by Brian McIntyre, founder and chief executive officer of WorkStrategy, a human resources technology management company.
Whether individuals want to start a dry cleaning business, an information technology firm or a home design service, "the biggest risk is they haven't had any experience," said McIntyre, who will provide grants and endowments over five years.
The college can teach people about business plans, marketing, human resources and other areas, he said, adding, "It is nice to be able to take somebody through the paces in a safe environment."
More than 11.3 percent of adults are engaged in entrepreneurial activity in the United States, according to a study last year funded by the Kauffman Foundation, which supports entrepreneurship and education through grants, training and events. And colleges have been responding.
The foundation estimates that about 1,500 colleges and universities offer entrepreneurial education opportunities today, up from about 450 in the mid-1990s.
