First class of entrepreneurs graduates from Ivy Tech Evansville
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The Garatoni School of Entrepreneurship & Innovation at Ivy Tech Community College Evansville has graduated its first class of students with a certificate in entrepreneurship—and already those grads are putting skills related to financing, business plans and marketing skills to use.
Twenty students completed 16 credit hours over two semesters to earn one of the inaugural entrepreneurship certificates. Some had started companies before the class began, and others did so during and after.
Chase Coslett, the school’s entrepreneurship and innovation department chair, said the program is designed to meet the students where they are in their entrepreneurial journey.
“It’s non-traditional academics. There are no tests. There are no quizzes. It’s about starting a business that you’re passionate about,” Coslett told Inside INdiana Business.
The class developed various ideas for companies, including hair salons, cleaning businesses, and food trucks. The students’ ages were just as diverse.
“We had individuals that were fresh out of high school, 18-year-olds, and we had individuals that were maybe in their second or third career,” Coslett said.
The school, named for South Bend businessman Larry Garatoni and his wife, Judy, launched with the help of Regional Innovation and Startup Education, called RISE. Iris Hammel, executive director of RISE, said the idea originated from a community-centered entrepreneurship program she started in South Bend in 2014.
“The mantra was to get students radically connected to the community and help them build themselves while they build their startup,” Hammel said.
When Hammel took the idea to Ivy Tech, she worked with the college to fast-track students past the usual business class prerequisites to get straight into the program.
“I didn’t really want business students,” Hammel said. “I wanted designers, engineers, people that had a passion or a skill that they wanted to learn how to monetize.”
Ivy Tech piloted the program in Indianapolis and then added it to the Evansville campus as well as to campuses in Bloomington, Fort Wayne, South Bend/Elkhart, Lake County, Lafayette, Marion, Columbus and Muncie—plus 70 high schools across the state.
Student and community benefits
The certificate’s curriculum gives students a path to entrepreneurship that relies heavily on networking.
“The learning happens because they’re getting connected to real leaders that are sharing the problems they’re facing, the work that they’re doing, what their business model is,” Hammel said. “It makes it come to life.”
Christopher Johnson, talent connection manager at Ivy Tech Evansville, said the adage, “It’s not what you know, it’s who you know,” is particularly relevant to prospective business owners who need connections and resources to succeed. Learning the entrepreneurial mindset is also crucial.
“From taking calculated risks to driving new-age innovation, the mindset is what moves the planet we live on,” Johnson said. “Those who have mastered this mindset are the ones who run the world.”
The program is intended to benefit the city of Evansville as well. According to an Ivy Tech annual report, 96% of entrepreneurial students plan to stay in their communities after course completion, and 86% say their communities are good places to start companies.
Indiana “is one of the best states in the nation for owning and operating a business,” Hammel said. “This is a really viable way to make a living and add to economic development.”
Business plans
Graduate Edward Donaldson said the program accelerated his business growth. He is launching an online training platform that helps people facing housing insecurity obtain information that will help them build trust with rental organizations.
“I learned having a business plan is very important,” Donaldson said. “And networking and building relationships are key for every successful business owner’s growth and development.”
Another graduate, Tiffany Templeton, already had a business. During the class, she rebranded her hair salon, discovered how to set up a website and learned about social media.
“I feel like I manifested the program,” she said. “I had been wanting to learn entrepreneurship for a long time, ever since I was young. I’ve always wanted to be a business owner, and there was nothing like that in the area.”
Joshua Marksberry joined the program after starting a company specializing in manufacturing carbon nano-materials. At first, he thought he didn’t need the curriculum.
“I had a product. I had a business plan,” he said. “But as I started talking with them and went through that process, I learned I definitely needed to join the course.”
Success stories
Marksberry made the right move. His company won $20,000 in Elevate Ventures’ regional pre-seed investment competition. Hammel said the venture capital not-for-profit and the Indiana Small Business Development Center share a belief about what makes Garatoni School graduates stand out.
“They said your students know what it’s like to be an entrepreneur,” Hammel said. “They understand the work. They understand the obstacles. They understand how to combat the stress, the difficulty of it.”
However, according to Coslett, the program’s most significant success is the confidence the graduates gain throughout the program.
“A lot of these individuals were absolutely terrified of public speaking,” Coslett said. “At the end, they were standing up in front of people. They were selling themselves.”
That’s exactly what happened with entrepreneurial graduate Alfonso E. Vidal, who wanted to turn his love for photography into a business. His mother, Daniela Vidal, the chancellor of Ivy Tech Evansville, said the program enabled Alfonso to conquer his fears.
“Through this program, we saw him develop tremendous confidence,” Daniela Vidal said, “He learned more about himself and his passion and how to convert that into a source of sustainability for the future.”
The Evansville program was also successful in allying its members.
“We all became one big family, and although we’re graduated, we still have a group chat, and we all plan on utilizing, keeping in contact and networking with each other to grow our businesses,” Templeton said.
Entrepreneurial challenges
These entrepreneurs will need each other’s support as they grow their businesses. One of the biggest challenges they’ll face is leaving the startup space, putting in business systems and starting to scale.
“At the same time you [are] working on the business, you still have to be running your business,” Hammel said. “You are the cook, the dishwasher, the prep, the hostess. You are everything still.”
Hammel said there’s a lot of money in Indiana available to invest in high-growth, high-potential startups. Unfortunately, smaller operations don’t have as many resources.
“If you’re a mom-and-pop or a small or mid-sized business, that same type of financial support, that mentoring support isn’t always accessible,” he said. “So we’re trying to create an ecosystem that supports all businesses.”
Financial support was Templeton’s struggle. She wanted to know how other Evansville entrepreneurs were finding ways to fund their businesses. With the program’s help, Templeton overcame that obstacle.
“We learned about bank loans and how we can get grants through different programs in the area. I was able to create a business plan that I didn’t have before,” Templeton said.
What’s next
Colsett expects two groups—a total of 50 students—to begin the entrepreneurial program at Ivy Tech Evansville in the fall of 2023. While anyone with a business vision is suited for the certificate, Hammel said ideal candidates share a few characteristics.
“Are they hungry? Are they humble? And will they hustle? Those are the three key aspects,” Hammel said.
Combining those traits with the curriculum allows prospective entrepreneurs to build confidence and pursue their dreams.
“If you visit at the beginning of the year and then you come back at the end of the year, you will see a complete transformation of humans,” said Hammel.
Templeton said the program helps students become stronger people. She and a few other graduates plan to advance to the next level and get an entrepreneurship technical certificate. The school also offers an associate of applied science degree.
“You’re only up against yourself when you’re an entrepreneur,” Templeton said. “You’re not battling anybody else. You’re not fighting for a position. You are the position.”