MASON CITY – John Collins, owner of American Crane Inc. (ACI) in Garner, IA, donated $12,000 to the NIACC John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center to be used toward curriculum and training for a series of concurrent enrollment entrepreneurship classes at North Iowa area high schools.
Collins received a $10,000 grant from the Pappajohn Center when he started ACI in 1996. He said he appreciated the opportunity to help fund this opportunity for entrepreneurship training for high school students, as he wants to help the innovators and entrepreneurs of the future find a sense of satisfaction in their work.
“I want to help develop young people who care about their work, and find a sense of accomplishment in what they do,” Collins said.
“This is the first time a grant recipient has essentially returned their grant,” Putnam said, “and it is exciting to see how it will be used to grow the entrepreneurs and innovators of the future.”
Seventeen North Iowa high school business teachers received Entrepreneurship curriculum training from University of Iowa instructors during the week of June 18 at NIACC. The curriculum was developed by the Jacobson Institute of Youth Entrepreneurship at the University of Iowa.
Tim Putnam, Associate Director of the NIACC Pappajohn Center, said the NIACC Introduction to Entrepreneurship course will be offered at eight to 10 high schools during the 2012-13 school year.
Other local school districts are developing plans to launch the class in the near future.
In addition, a new NIACC Entrepreneurship Academy will be launched at Garner-Hayfield High School this fall. Academy students will complete seven college classes during their senior year. School districts partnering with NIACC in the Entrepreneurship Academy include: Garner-Hayfield, Ventura, Clear Lake and West Hancock.
For information about the Introduction to Entrepreneurship course or the new Entrepreneurship Academy, contact Jean Ostrander, NIACC Director of School Partnerships, at 1-888-466-4222 ext 4177 or email ostrajea@niacc.edu
The national NACCE Innovation Award winning NIACC John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center provides college level courses and degree programs in entrepreneurship, as well as comprehensive consulting services for business start-ups, existing industries and owner transitions in the North Iowa region. Space is available for start-up businesses in the North Iowa Business Incubator. For more information, contact the NIACC JPEC at 641-422-4111.
