Business Students Participate in Okoboji Entrepreneurial Institute
Four Buena Vista University students participated in the annual Okoboji Entrepreneurial Institute. They joined young entrepreneurs from other schools for the six-day academic experience and earned academic credit.
Four Buena Vista University students participated in the annual Okoboji Entrepreneurial Institute (OEI) Aug. 2-7 at the Iowa Lakeside Laboratory on West Lake Okoboji.
The students who were selected for OEI are:
- Meghan Harmening, a senior accounting and business – financial decision-making concentration major from Marshall, Minn.
- Callie Hoffman, a senior business – marketing concentration major from Schaller
- Neil Marshall, a senior accounting and business – sports management concentration major from Alta
- Rudy Pineda, a junior business – marketing concentration major from Storm Lake
Alternate for OEI was Navneet Singh, a junior business – financial decision-making concentration major from Yamuna Nagar, India.
"The Okoboji Entrepreneurial Institute is a unique experience in total immersion in business entrepreneurship. Consistent with the learning philosophy of the Harold Walter Siebens School of Business, our students at OEI get the valuable experience of learning business by doing business," said Dr. Ashok Subramanian, professor of business and dean of the Harold Walter Siebens School of Business. "The OEI program is a risk-free platform where our students learn to adapt and apply classroom knowledge, skills and abilities to address contemporary business challenges. They are mentored and advised by successful business and community leaders, and most importantly, our students learn to build personal and professional networks that are critical to their professional and personal success."
The institute is a joint effort of the Iowa Lakes Corridor Development Corporation (Buena Vista, Clay, Dickinson and Emmet counties), the State Board of Regents, the Iowa Department of Economic Development and the Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Centers at the University of Iowa, Iowa State University and University of Northern Iowa. BVU President Fred Moore is a member of the Corridor board of directors.
The BVU students joined other young entrepreneurs from the Regents schools and Iowa Lakes Community College for the six-day academic experience, and students earned three academic credits upon completion. OEI is an advanced study of entrepreneurship that includes an entrepreneurial simulation, seminars with successful entrepreneurs and business and community leaders, and networking and mentoring to enhance their understanding of entrepreneurship opportunities in Iowa.
The students worked in teams on a computer-based simulation and presented their business plans to community volunteer venture capitalists to acquire capital to fuel growth for the simulated companies. During the week, they stayed with host families and also participated in a community service project.