Retreat for Professors
Hands-on training for faculty from across academic disciplines
June 13, 2007
Pictures from the Entrepreneurial Retreat for Professors
HUNTINGDON, PA (June 13, 2007) - Juniata College Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership (JCEL) hosted the Entrepreneurial Retreat for Professors from June 3-5 on the Juniata College campus. Attendees included faculty from across the country as JCEL offered a unique educational retreat for visiting collegiate and high school faculty and was commended by all as a success.
The retreat included 43 faculty members from 14 different schools and 8 states. Teams of two from each college were encouraged to attend so that after the event, they would be able to help each other integrate entrepreneurship into their courses. The purpose of this workshop was to offer faculty hands-on professional development to a wide variety of academic disciplines, such as biology, art, music, business, and the humanities, in a workshop format. Faculty left the retreat with several helpful and informative action steps to integrate entrepreneurship into their curriculums: a detailed syllabus to put into action, ideas for classroom activities assignments, a toolkit of resources and a network of colleagues that share the same interests and can expand each other’s knowledge of entrepreneurship at their colleges. Just one of the comments left by faculty was,“I really liked how we saw the strong models of what was working well at Juniata, including past stumbling blocks, future challenges, and opportunity to compare and contrast with other campuses.”
"I really liked how we saw the strong models of what was working well at Juniata, including past stumbling blocks, future challenges, and opportunity to compare and contrast with other campuses."
The three day event began on Sunday, June 3rd, in the von Liebig Center for Science on Juniata’s campus, where faculty registered and were immediately given the opportunity to start meeting with peers. Dinner and presentations from Dr. Michael Lehman and Professor Sarah Worley, both of Juniata College, followed the networking event. After the long day of travel, visiting professors were given the opportunity to relax, socialize, and enjoy an evening of fun with new friends, music, and dancing. Dan Cook-Huffman and Jeremy Santos started off the night with live music and student entrepreneur Demetri Patitsas taught salsa lessons to a very open-minded crowd of faculty. “I gained a vast knowledge of networking. Not just with socializing, but also with the people that are doing the same type of projects that we are doing,” said Professor Peter Eberle, Director of Business at Penn-State Fayette. “The program’s organization was superb and the casual atmosphere made it run so smoothly that it didn’t feel like any of the other conferences I’ve been to this summer.”
Day two of the retreat contained the bulk of the educational sessions. The morning sessions included presentations from Professor Jim Donaldson of the Accounting, Business, and Economics Department, a video conference from Professor Andy Belser of the Theatre Department and Chad Herzog, Director of the Performing Arts Department, and Professor Sarah Worley of the Communications Department. Lunch included a surprise visit from Demetri Patitsas and his ice cream truck company, Absolute Creo. After two more afternoon sessions, the entire group made their way out to the Raystown Field Station, Juniata’s premier off-campus teaching facility. The Field Station offered participants a chance to converse more, as it was an interesting change in scenery from a typical classroom. “In the past I have attended the national conferences that bring in thousands of people. They usually discuss the philosophies and we write papers,” said Ms. Rebecca Campbell, Director of Career Works at Seton Hill University. “I really liked the pragmatism of the workshop and the small group of less than 50 was fantastic because of the chance to go more in depth with each topic and to have dialogue with all the people here.”
"I really liked the pragmatism of the workshop and the small group of less than 50 was fantastic because of the chance to go more in depth with each topic and to have dialogue with all the people here."
Once everyone got situated in the new building, Professors Grace Fala and Janet Farrell Leontiou gave a presentation on how to be more inventive in teaching students about entrepreneurship before an outdoor cookout by the lake. After dinner, Professor Clif Kussmaul, of Muhlenberg College, had a session involving tips for user interface prototyping.
The final day of the retreat included four morning sessions before participants started to pack up for departure. Presenters included Dr. Michael Lehman, Ms. Rebecca Cambell and Dr. Doina Vlad, Dr. Marlene Burkhardt, and Professor Sarah Worley. The retreat was commended by the visiting faculty as a great event that “left room for networking and participant interaction” as well as offering “a broad interdisciplinary focus for entrepreneurial implementation”.
The retreat was funded in part by the Coleman Foundation out of Chicago, Illinois. The Coleman Foundation supports colleges across the country that have entrepreneurial programs that reach cross-campus, into the community, and have plans for expansion.
Overall, the Entrepreneurial Retreat for Professors was deemed a success. Faculty left with a better understanding of how entrepreneurship can be implemented in their field and what tools can be used for achieving set goals. As Betty Hoge, Professor of Economics & Business Administration at Bridgewater College said, “I wouldn’t consider this a good experience. It was an outstanding experience and would absolutely recommend this to others from both business and other fields.”
For more information, contact jcel@juniata.edu or 814-506-JCEL.