TIP Frameworks for Redesigning, Reimagining Education

TIP Districts and the Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

In January, representatives from five TIP districts – Edgecombe County, Hoke County, Mt. Airy City, Asheboro City, and Elizabeth City/Pasquotank and partners at the NCSU Kenan Institute went to Apple Park in Cupertino, California for a two-day innovation briefing and design session.  The sessions took an equity lens to the issues of innovation and entrepreneurism. Participating districts will share more from their experience at the May meeting. In February, Raj Narayan, Associate Director, Kenan Institute for Engineering, Technology & Science at NC State University presented on this topic at the Eisenhower Fellows Global Conference on the Education of the Future.  Here is his abstract:

Education & Workforce Development — Applied Synergies Partnership: An Innovative K-12 Entrepreneurial Model

Economies in many parts of the world are undergoing massive transformations, including transitioning from a rural to urban economy and moving away from traditional manufacturing and agriculture towards innovation, high tech and service oriented industries. These changes require a shift in our education models, and K-12 classrooms need experiential learning opportunities that are relevant for students’ future career interests. Applied K-12 entrepreneurship education, which is a curriculum that teaches school-aged children adaptive leadership, critical thinking, problem solving and risk analysis and assessment, is a promising pathway to develop an entrepreneurial workforce that has the core skills employers desire. Providing communities across the state, nation and world with a model for implementing innovative entrepreneurial pedagogy and practices would help address the workforce needs of communities that want to remain competitive in the domestic and global economies of the future.

This reflects a framework of an entrepreneurial ecosystem.  We have more questions than answers at this point and invite TIP members to explore these issues with us:

• What is the why?
• What is our entrepreneurial ecosystem – in our communities, region, and state?
• How do we design a framework for K-12, higher ed, and community stakeholders?
• What are programmatic pieces and strategic approaches that support the vision? (Curriculum, flexible learning environment, culture, entrepreneurial principals and teachers, collaborative relationships, etc.)

We are exploring some of the programmatic pieces as we continue to design the framework.  Here is a set of slides to help you and your team explore the question of “What is your why?” for an entrepreneurial ecosystem.  EdNC has worked with TIP to create videos as well. In this video, Ann McColl takes you through the slides.  (The primary purpose of the video is to demonstrate the use of the slides so that you can use the slides in your meetings.). And we interviewed Kenneth Proseus, Director of Operations for the NCSU Center for Entrepreneurship to learn how K-12 can connect to the opportunities at NCSU.  This video is available as well. For an expansive list of resources on entrepreneurism and innovation from an equity lens, go to our TIP document.