Estero Breeds Entrepreneurs

Dr. Sandra Kauanui

When Dr. Sandra Kauanui is asked by community leaders and economic stakeholders how Southwest Florida can keep young people in the region, she proudly says it is already is happening at The Daveler & Kauanui School of Entrepreneurship at Florida Gulf Coast University (FGCU) which is becoming an entrepreneurial ecosystem spawning new businesses in several ways.

Viable businesses have sprouted among the 130 students who enroll each semester.

“Everyone is concerned about the graduates leaving the area,” said Dr. Kauanui. “If you want them to stay here, you give them a way to grow their businesses. We have a number of students who have graduated and are still here because they are working on their businesses and continue to want our support and help.”

Any alumni from FGCU can come back and get help starting a business.

The Daveler & Kauanui School of Entrepreneurship started an alumni program two years ago. “If you have a degree from this university, we’re going to help you whenever you decide you want to start a business,” added Dr. Kauanui.

The Daveler & Kauanui School of Entrepreneurship started a program for military veterans who move to this area and wanted to start and grow a business.

“The veterans from our Veterans Entrepreneurship Program have generated the highest amount of gross income compared to other Florida Universities that are running similar programs,” said Dr. Kauanui. As a result, the school continues to receive state and government grants for their program. Their curriculum has also been used as a model for other schools in the state that are supporting veterans’ entrepreneurship programs.

Dr. Kauanui has outreach programs for public/private high schools to support junior and senior high school students to learn the entrepreneurial mindset before they enter college.

Before COVID, FGCU’s Rist Family Foundation’s Institute for Entrepreneurship had yearly competitions for high school students. Student teams from Lee and Collier counties attended a High School Entrepreneurship Challenge at FGCU where they compete in a pitch competition for cash prizes. In addition, the Daveler & Kauanui School for Entrepreneurship worked with one of our local private schools to help them start their “Maker Space.”

According to Dr. Kauanui, “The school has a number of SW Florida’s retired successful entrepreneurs who are excited about having the opportunity to work with our students which is a vital part of building an entrepreneurial ecosystem. It also provides them something meaningful to support in retirement in addition to playing golf and tennis.”

Laughing as she recalls how retirement was the reason she moved to Estero 14 years ago, Dr. Kauanui notices how former successful entrepreneurs and industry leaders enjoy serving as mentors or judges for their programs. They enjoy working with and watching our students and veterans grow and learn. They also appreciate the mental stimulation and agree how invigorating it is to work with bright young people.

Dr. Kauanui talked about a recent partnership agreement with NASA which FGCU has signed. Dr. Kauanui explained, “Our students select from one of NASA’s existing technologies and work with NASA’s scientists to better understand the technology and how to utilize it to create a new product the student could take to market.”

All of this is happening in the middle of Estero with The Chamber of Commerce adding further support as businesses grow, commercial spaces are built or leased, and new jobs are created in this community.

Since 2014, Dr. Kauanui has built FGCU’s entrepreneurship program from a minor to major; from just an Institute to a school and an Institute. With over 800 majors and minors, the school is now one of The Princeton Review’s and Entrepreneur magazine’s top 30 universities for undergraduate entrepreneurship studies. The school also just launched a new graduate entrepreneurship program.

Dr. Kauanui contends that the center of her strategic plan is student success, and she is doing all she can to make sure funds are there to support the students. She makes a point to credit Frank Daveler who invented the chip that made autopilot in airplanes possible. According to Dr. Kauanui, “When we were raising money for the building, he gave us $4 million. He told me that if he had not had help when he started his business, he might not have been as successful as he was. Through his support and many more successful entrepreneurs, we continue to grow the school and give money in small increments to our student entrepreneurs to help them take their projects to the next step.”

She points to FGCU’s Runway Program, coordinated by the Rist Family Institute for Entrepreneurship. Dr. Kauanui explained, “Initially, we received seed funding ($250,0000) from a state grant in 2016 which helped us to start our incubator.”

Lucas Hall, a 27,000-square-foot, threestory paradise for entrepreneurs opened last fall. Previously, the entrepreneurship program operated from FGCU’s off-campus Emergent Technologies Institute. The opening of Lucas Hall enables entrepreneurship students to take all of their classes on the main campus for the first time.

Dr. Kauanui is especially proud that the structure was built with private funds. “This is how you do it. The impact donors have made not just on this university, but on the whole community by doing this is a Godsend. These students are staying in Southwest Florida because there’s a place they can always go back to – they have an alumni room in Lucas Hall. They have a place to go, and they feel such strong bonds with each other and with us,” Dr. Kauanui said. “Lucas Hall represents that entrepreneurship is here to stay, and it is going to infuse an entrepreneurial and innovative environment.”

The $10.4 million facility includes the FineMark National Bank & Trust Incubator, with shared workspaces, private conference rooms for mentors to meet with students, computers, a camera and audio recording equipment, and product and app development software. It also has direct access to expert faculty, staff and community startup coaches. Aimed at helping students create products for their businesses, the Rist Family Foundation Maker Space contains 3D printers, a laser cutter and virtual reality development kits. Lucas Hall also features a media lab incorporating total lighting and sound control, backdrops, props and cinema-quality audio-video equipment.

The building is also home to the Small Business Development Center and FGCU’s Regional Economic Research Institute.

When asked about the relationship with the Estero Chamber or other business organizations in Southwest Florida, Dr. Kauanui said, “I’m really trying to support the growth of entrepreneurship so that this community can be known as an entrepreneurial ecosystem and keep these talented students and all of their knowledge here. That’s one of the reasons I feel so strongly about this. The likelihood of them staying in Florida is clearly better. It puts Estero on the map and helps to grow its recognition.”