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Written by Grace Schroller, class of 2026

In the Fall of 2022 something great blossomed at ˮ����: the creation of the Entrepreneurship department including a minor and certificate. The program began with the support of passionate donors and the Board of Trustees as a way to prepare students for a future in business and startups. Lisa Tschauner ’07G, chair of the entrepreneurship department, plays a key role providing significant professional guidance for the program.

“Entrepreneurship integrates very well with other majors at ˮ���� and is very purposeful,” Tschauner said. “The entrepreneurship minor could be a foundational component to all the other programs at ˮ����.”

ˮ���� offers six entrepreneurship classes — including an entry-level, dual-credit class for high school students that will be available to ˮ���� students in 2025 — all featuring different skills to be learned and opportunities outside of the classroom. The department partners with local businesses in the Crete and Lincoln communities, such as Ace Hardware, Crete Medical Center, Heaths Sports and Tees, Nelnet, Loudr, Bulu and Reliant Transportation. These organizations sponsor prizes and serve as guest speakers, mentors and advisors to students. It’s a win-win-win for students, ˮ���� and businesses, Tschauner said. Take Reliant
Transportation for example.

“They present challenges in their company to our students and work with them to ideate and prototype possible solutions that they can actually implement,” Tschauner said. “Now, several of our ˮ���� graduates go to work for Reliant Transportation.”

Bronson Wyman ’24 took ENT 401 - New Venture Experience, where students designed and operated their own business. Bronson and his team created a podcast called “Tiger Talks.” They worked with local businesses to negotiate ad sales and network. He also took ENT 495 - Launching an Entrepreneurial Venture.

“The entrepreneurship program was beneficial for me, because it helped me learn how to sell myself as well as a product,” Wyman said. “From learning to push a product that was my own business in my senior fall, to learning how to do a business model overall my senior spring, [entrepreneurship] really helped me develop my intrapersonal traits as well as business knowledge.”

The entrepreneurship program also established a new student entrepreneurship organization called OWN, which stands for Opportunities, Wealth, Networking. The senior capstone class, BUS 496 - Strategic Management led to the development of this group. The group helps prepare student entrepreneurs through real-world experiences and empowers them to be creative thinkers through resources, opportunities and an inclusive environment. In the first year, they hosted “OWN Your Voice” a speaker series featuring successful entrepreneurs and alumni, offered professional headshots to students and attended the Midwest Entrepreneurship Conference in Omaha.

A future goal for these students is international travel. Their goal is to find a business in another country and assist them in solving challenges within their businesses, and to experience entrepreneurship in other countries. The program also administers events such as, “BIG Idea ˮ����.” Students get the opportunity to pitch their new business ideas to judges who are entrepreneur professionals in the Crete and Lincoln area. The top three are then selected for cash awards of up to $3,000.

“I’d suggest everyone at ˮ����, entrepreneur or not, to involve themselves in Big Idea ˮ����, because you never know what might come from it,” Wyman said. 

Cale Stolle, associate professor of engineering and physics at ˮ����, recognizes how the entrepreneurship program embodies ˮ����’s liberal arts education. Many of his students have been finalists in the Big Idea event.

“[Tschauner] pushes students to explore creative solutions and take exploratory routes that may seem daunting, and leads students through challenges as a method of personal growth, both in capability and in understanding of self,” Stolle said.

Tschauner echoes the versatility of studying entrepreneurship for any student at ˮ����, no matter their major or career aspirations. While some students do have goals to open their own business, it’s not a requirement to study entrepreneurship. Many employers seek graduates who have the innovative skills they learn in these classes like critical thinking, problem solving, business planning, negotiation and communication.

“Entrepreneurship is just very interdisciplinary, it’s one of those foundational things that is only going to make a student a much stronger professional,” Tscahuner said.