Hampshire College
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Business and Entrepreneurship
Students can incorporate the resources available through the Hampshire College Lemelson Center into their academic work and explore methods of organizing, creating, and managing innovative enterprises that effect social change.
In addition to creating an intellectual toolbox of successful entrepreneurial practices, you can research existing social ventures and the impact that social entrepreneurship has on society.
Students are given hands-on opportunities to start enterprises and collaborate with alumni and community members under the guidance of Lemelson staff and faculty. Recent alumni can tap into Lemelson entrepreneurship resources for continued support of their enterprises.
| Student Project Titles Applications and Innovations in Retail Developing an Assistive Technology Business Building Social Capital Through Cause-Related Marketing The Art Market: Record Sales in the Canon Social Entrepreneurship for Sustainable Communities Patent This! Ordinary People, Extraordinary Managers |
Featured Faculty Profiles |
Sample First-Year Course
The Business of Change: Social Action Through Entrepreneurship
This course will explore how social entrepreneurship affects change in society. Using primarily case studies, participants in this course will identify key entrepreneurial methods and practices that are or could be, used to foster positive change. The course will start off with a look at the general effects entrepreneurship has on society and then move on to investigating key entrepreneurial processes and techniques that are used for creating change. The latter part of the course will be devoted to creating an intellectual toolbox for entrepreneurial procedures for effecting social change. For participants in this course to be successful, they must desire to make a difference in the world, be comfortable doing research, enjoy sharing their ideas and thoughts in discussions, and be self-directed.
| Sample Courses at Hampshire Beyond Sprawl & Crawl Bicycle Design & Beyond Creative Electronics The Culture & Political Economy of Tourism Designing from Problem to Production Farming in America Intro to Soft Goods Design Mills to Lofts Social Entrepreneurship: Starting Your Own Socially Responsible Enterprise Women’s Fabrication Skills Zymurgy |
Through the Consortium Business Ethics (SC) Business History (UMass) Economics of Corporate Finance (SC) Economic Game Theory (SC) Entrepreneurship Initiative (UMass) Ethical Issues in the Boardroom & the Classroom (SC) Hospitality: Strategic Management (UMass) Internet Business (UMass) Introductory Accounting (UMass) Intro to Sports Management (UMass) Professional Practice (UMass) Seminar in Industrial Organization (MHC) |
Facilities and Resources
Through the Applied Design program at Hampshire, which encompasses commercial design, industrial design, assistive technology, and universal design, students are able to apply for grants and patents and begin the process of creating their own businesses. The Lemelson Assistive Technology Development Center (LATDC) achieves its mission through a combination of courses, activities, internships, collaborations with business and nonprofit organizations, and through teams of students who design, develop, and make equipment. This academic program, now a part of Hampshire’s School for Interdisciplinary Arts, grew out of the original Lemelson National Program, which provides the framework for nurturing the entrepreneurial spirit and penchant for innovation that exists at Hampshire College.
The Smith College extracurricular club, Women Discovering Business, offers students from the consortium an opportunity to come together to discuss women in the workforce and career opportunities, as well as listen to guest speakers.
Through the Isenberg School of Management at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Five College students can enroll in courses on management, accounting and information systems, finance and operations management, hospitality and tourism management, marketing, and business communications. The Isenberg School frequently holds guest lectures, business conferences, and leadership seminars.