Southeast hires director for Center of Innovation and Entrepreneurship

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KRCU) Southeast Missouri State University’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship has hired David Mosby as its director.

Mosby will be responsible for working with the Small Business Technology and Development Center.

He is also working on a portability grant for Dexter, where the local economy has been hurt by layoffs at the Faurecia manufacturing plant.

"What we’ll try to do is train the businesses to be more efficient so that they’ll be able to survive through this economic downturn. And besides being more efficient, maybe getting them to look outside of their community to see how they can sell their goods outside of Dexter to bring more hard money into the community," Mosby said.

Mosby will work under James Stapleton, who now serves as the Center’s executive director.

David Mosby started on September 12.

Jacob McCleland, KRCU

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Southeast offers student entrepreneurship contest

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KRCU) - Southeast Missouri State University’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship is running a competition for Southeast students with a innovative ideas.

The Big Idea Competition offers a thousand dollar prize to the team with the best business plan ... and it's not just for business majors.

There will be twenty finalists from each college that will compete for the grand prize. In addition, each college will have a winner that will receive $200.

The competition administrator, Dr. Joel Bolton, says the competition is centered around the search for students with a great idea, not just business savvy.

"We’ve never done this before. But hopefully it will work out. It will catch on. And we will be doing this years from now," Dr. Bolton said. "Ideally some of these ideas that the students think of might become firms, they might become ventures, they might get funded. They might grow and become household names. It could happen."

The deadline for the contest is Oct. 7 at 3:00 PM. Bolton hopes the contest promotes a zeal for business entrepreneurship amon

Hannah Parent, KRCU

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Southeast Missouri State partners with ACCION Texas

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KRCU) - Southeast Missouri State University is now partnering with the micro-lending giant ACCION Texas.

The partnership creates a new division of ACCION, named ACCION Delta.

ACCION is based in San Antonio and is the nation’s largest micro-lending organization. To date it has lent over $112 million through nearly twelve thousand loans.

ACCION president and CEO Janie Barrera says the organization helps struggling businesses and entrepreneurs get needed capital by giving out loans that range from $500 to $100,000.

"There’s a lot of small businesses, that don't have access right now because they haven't kept good financials. Or maybe it because there new in their business, and banks are regulated and they can’t help everyone," Barrera said. "So ACCION as a not-for-profit organization can bring capital then to small business community here in the delta."

The organization says it was drawn to the partnership by the university’s Douglas C. Greene Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship.

Since 2006, the program’s graduates have started nearly 250 businesses with over 90 percent of those businesses still operating.

Program director James Stapleton says the partnership will make a big difference in the region’s economy.

"We hope that the partnership will allow more individuals who are starting or who have an existing business and need some capital to grow have access to it," Stapleton said.

The partnership was announced Friday at the Show-Me Center.

Tim Filla, KRCU

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Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship carries Douglas Greene's name

CAPE GIRARDEAU, MO (KRCU) - Southeast Missouri State University’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship now officially bears the name of Douglas C. Greene.

Mr. Greene and his wife Heather are successful businesspeople who have assisted the University in with various scholarships and programs, including the Multi-Media Center in Kent Library.

Himself an entrepreneur, Greene has provided financial assistance to the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. He has also undertaken the role of guest speaker and motivator at the Center.

“I’ve subscribed to this giving a hand up rather than a hand out. And so we have sponsored scholarships here for deserving students in entrepreneurialism, and we have a plan down the road to do even more. And what is great is to come back and meet these students,” Greene said.

A dedication ceremony was held on Friday to honor Douglas and Heather Greene.

Jacob McCleland, KRCU

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