UMKC, Blue Springs schools testing entrepreneurship class
February 11, 2016 | Andrea Essner
The University of Missouri-Kansas City wants to play matchmaker between high school students and entrepreneurship.
UMKC announced Wednesday that it’s partnering with the Blue Springs School District to test an entrepreneurship course for both high school students and community members.
The course, which aims to introduce students to opportunities in entrepreneurship, is available for credit to students and non-credit to community members. “Introduction to Entrepreneurship”
aims to acquaint both students and community members to the opportunities available in area entrepreneurship.
“Many people were determined to see this course offered in Blue Springs, and Annette Seago, the assistant superintendent of the Blue Springs School District, worked hard to bring it to fruition,” said Jeff Hornsby, director of the Regnier Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.
To encourage enrollment, Seago worked with Lead Bank to provide three $500 scholarships to select local companies that send employees to attend the class.
Philip Gonsher, assistant teaching professor of entrepreneurship and marketing at UMKC’s Henry W. Bloch School of Management, is currently teaching the pilot program in Blue Springs to 19 students and community members. Starting in the fall, the course will be taught by two Blue Springs high school teachers and will be offered to students for dual high school and college credit.
Hornsby recognizes that this is an opportunity for students to not only learn more about entrepreneurship, but also get a taste of what UMKC’s Bloch School has to offer.
“Blue Springs has high school students who are potentially interested in the Bloch School entrepreneurship program, and they can begin the education process through course offerings such as this,” Hornsby said.
Featured Business

2016 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
Tenacious Scollar CEO to international investors: Look me in the eyes and try to tell me ‘no’
With a year of hustle well under way, you can’t break Scollar’s stride, Lisa Tamayo said as she prepares to take the stage in front of a 25,000-plus person crowd May 20 at the Collision tech conference in Toronto. “[I believe] 15,000 people applied to present a pitch and they whittle that down to 60…
Zego exit, investment wins reflect critical need for startups to look outside KC, co-founder says
Homegrown is great, Adam Blake said, but at some point scaling companies must explore the world of resources and dollars available outside the metro. “Kansas City has a lot to offer — plenty of talent, great place to live and quality of life, helpful mentors, etc. — but I would say it’s a requirement for startups…
The Distrikc founders: We’re not waiting on outsiders to save our brothers and sisters
It’s time for members of Kansas City’s largely unseen and forgotten communities of color to take control, said Wesley Hamilton, one of the organizers behind The Distrikc. “We speak so much about KC, but people forget whole groups of people — I’m talking Troost to Main, East Kansas City, South Kansas City,” he said. “We want…
‘Legendary’ UMKC Enactus team earns spot in national entrepreneurship finals
The University of Missouri-Kansas City’s Enactus team is the fourth most impactful in the country, declared Ben Williams. “At UMKC Enactus, we take the world’s greatest challenges into our own hands, channeling our power as students, advocates, and entrepreneurs,” the team told a crowd gathered Tuesday at the Kansas City Convention Center, as they took…
