ventures. Whether those ventures succeed or fail, students still gain experience from the application.” Failure is actually built in to the curriculum. “Entrepreneurship is a curly profession,” says Weinstein, who established the EOC. “There’s no straight line to success and there’s no job security. We want to make sure students understand this before they graduate.” To underscore the point, members of the EOC share their bootstrap stories with students in the program’s capstone course. Their stories often include tales of rejection, false starts and white-knuckle moments.
three-year terms and contribute $2,000 in dues each year. These contributions enable Canisius to build upon its already mighty entrepreneurship program. There are now 10 courses in the major, compared to three, less than a decade ago. In addition to traditional management, marketing and finance studies, new courses emphasize creativity, innovation, interpersonal skills and entrepreneurial leadership. “These are universal business skills that students can apply anywhere in whatever fields they choose to pursue,” says Ji-Hee Kim, PhD, director of the entrepreneurship program. Real-world experience is also engrained in an entrepreneurial education at Canisius. Students act as consultants for small businesses. Under the guidance of faculty, they work on projects for and advise practicing entrepreneurs. Outside class, undergraduates manage MyLinkFace, a studentrun social venture that uses multimedia technology to teach foreign-speaking individuals how to master the English language (Canisius Magazine, spring 2011). The CanDo Society pairs entrepreneurship students with local chief executives, who provide students with practical work experiences within the various departments in their organizations. “One of the reasons I transferred to Canisius for entrepreneurship was because of all the exposure I’d get to real entrepreneurs and real-world entrepreneurship practices,” says Samuel Garofano ’14. Garofano served as president of the Canisius chapter of the Collegiate Entrepreneurs Organization (CEO). The club develops and implements experiential entrepreneurship projects, which students then test at on-campus elevator pitch and business plan competitions. EOC members serve as judges. The front-runners then compete at the national CEO conference. Since 2007, the Canisius team has taken home multiple Best Chapter awards in the categories of marketing plans and teaching entrepreneurship. Ji-Hee Kim is a three-time recipient of the Best Chapter Advisor Award. “Books can only teach so much and Dr. Kim knows that,” says Gzyl. “She’s developed a program around the idea that students apply their knowledge from the textbook to actual business 8
| C ANISIUS COLLEGE MAGA ZINE • SPRING 2014
James Cipriani Jr. ’87 talks about the many failures he endured before finally getting his executive recruiting and placement agency, Systems Personnel, off the ground. Jim Kessler ’87 shares accounts of the technological and financial roadblocks he hit prior to enlisting the help of Alan Weinstein to open the laser tag and entertainment center Lasertron. Stuart Angert and Andy Shaevel recall how they “sweat bullets for 18 months,” waiting for RSA to break even. “There’s no textbook that can teach the lessons of courage, ambition and perseverance that I learned in those classes,” says William Severyn. His brother, Alex, adds, “All the entrepreneurs who spoke found their successes in Buffalo, which is exactly what we are trying to do, and that just makes our vision seem all the more attainable.” Perhaps sooner than expected. Western New York is in the midst of a renaissance and Canisius’ promising entrepreneurs can be another catalyst for the region’s resurgence. Entrepreneurs create jobs. Jobs create wealth. Wealth supports the infrastructure that brings new products and ideas to market and ultimately makes for a more vibrant community. “Canisius is a platform for the next class of opportunity takers and value makers in this community and if they succeed, everyone succeeds - the college, the city, the region and New York State,” says Ware. Something to chew on the next time you pick up a jar of Susie Cuke’s pickles at your local farmer’s market. Just remember where the seeds for that great business were cultivated.