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WVU to host Governor's School of Entrepreneurship in 2017 and 2018

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Enterprising state high school students can apply for a summer stint at West Virginia University in the Governor’s School of Entrepreneurship, which begins July 5.

WVU won a two-year bid to host the Governor’s School of Entrepreneurship this year and in 2018 after submitting a proposal to host the summer event for students entering their sophomore, junior and senior years of high school. The University was notified by the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts of its successful proposal to host the event.

The 21-day residential summer program will provide educational experience to 60 rising high school students who are promising young entrepreneurs to help them understand the commitment for developing a startup company and sustaining it through sound business practices.

“West Virginia’s greatest asset is its youth, and the Governor’s School of Entrepreneurship is a wonderful opportunity for some of our state’s brightest students to learn the ins and outs of starting and operating a business,” said West Virginia Governor Jim Justice. “I am thankful that West Virginia University and the College of Business and Economics are giving our students the tools they need to expand their horizons with the end goal being that they stay in West Virginia after they graduate and be successful entrepreneurs.”

WVU Provost Joyce McConnell said WVU is perfectly poised to host GSE, not only because of resources available to students but also because WVU is committed to entrepreneurship as a vehicle to promote positive change.

“I am confident that the Governor’s School will find a strong foundation here, where an entrepreneurial spirit infuses our curriculum, our approach to research and our co-curricular opportunities,” McConnell said. “From our College of Business and Economics to the WVU Launch Lab and the new IDEA Faculty Fellows program, we are championing entrepreneurship and innovation across the university. Our Governor’s School program will instill in students the excitement and confidence to launch their own business and educate them about sustainability and social entrepreneurship.”

GSE is provided through the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts and offers an intensive academic and social experience for its students. The program is designed to create a supportive environment that offers opportunity for continuous interaction of students, faculty and staff. The three-week school will include workshops, activities, recreation and a competition at the end of the program in which the young entrepreneurs will develop, pitch and actually launch a new business venture. All GSE students will also have the opportunity to earn three hours of college credit.

Javier Reyes, Milan Puskar Dean of the WVU College of Business and Economics, said WVU will produce a setting for the students that will make for a learning experience that students can use for the rest of their lives.

“Our goal for the Governor’s School of Entrepreneurship is to make a positive, indelible mark on the students who participate in this invaluable program,” Reyes said. “WVU has expertise that ranges from high school and collegiate business plan competitions to vital experiential learning, and from a designated BrickStreet Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship to important connections to West Virginia’s business community that are intended to help build momentum in the state economy. We want to make a significant impact on the lives of the students who attend GSE because we believe they will, in turn, make a big impact in this state and the world around them.”

WVU also hosts the Governor’s School for Math and Science and the Governor’s Honors Academy. For further information on the Governor’s School of Entrepreneurship, visit wvgse.org.

-WVU-

pg/01/24/17

CONTACT: Patrick Gregg, WVU College of Business and Economics

patrick.gregg@mail.wvu.edu; 304.293.5131

Follow @WVUToday on Twitter.