The Pointer UW-Stevens Point Student Newspaper
The Entrepreneurship Club at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point promotes the entrepreneurship mindset and acts as a resource center for students.
An entrepreneur is anyone who starts and runs a new business, which typically begins as a small business. Having the entrepreneurship mindset includes having creative ideas and problem solving skills for how to start a new project, product, or business.
The Entrepreneurship Club consists of students that have new projects or ideas for their own business, are independent and take initiative. However, students with any major can join the Entrepreneurship Club because the networking and problem solving skills students gain are valuable for any future career.
Tim Krause, advisor for the Entrepreneurship Club and entrepreneur himself, has started his own business and learned more from the failures than the successes.
“What’s really cool about it as an entrepreneur if you encounter a problem, you have to fix it. If you don’t know it, you have to learn it,” Krause said.
Corey Parris, senior business administration and entrepreneurship major founded the club. He recently showcased his entrepreneur mindset by starting his own app. In order for this to happen, he applied for and received the largest grant the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point has ever received by one student.
“If you get involved right away and get ahead of things, you will be a hot commodity,” Parris said.
Caleb Guilliams, senior business administration major, helped found the club. He values that like minded individuals are joining together for networking, discussing new ideas, giving feedback and connecting each other to resources.
Photo courtesy of UWSP Entrepreneurship Club.
Guilliams said, “The best thing that has happened to me in this club has been meeting people.”
Guilliams plans to graduate from UWSP to start his own business helping people manage their finances.
His advice for students seeking success is to utilize student status to establish a large network. Students do not need to know about business plan consulting, individual plan consulting, grant writing, or how to start a business to join the club.
“You don’t need to be the smartest guy in the room,” Parris said.
In addition to planning speaker events, meetings consist of members sharing their new business ideas. The Entrepreneurship Club will benefit the community when students graduate better equipped to start their own business and contribute to the Central Wisconsin economy.
Members of the Entrepreneurship Club are currently searching for underclassmen with untapped potential and the entrepreneur mindset. Both upperclassmen, Parris and Guilliams are better equipped to start their own business; they want to see freshman and sophomore students take over and sustain the club. Their goal for this year includes immense growth and awareness of the club.
Becoming a member of the club allows students to tap into the space and resources available such as information how to start a new project, access to top successful entrepreneurs, engagement with speakers, educational information and having other entrepreneurs to gain feedback from.
Although there is not a consistent meeting time, the Entrepreneurship Club always meets on the third floor of Delzell Hall. If interested in getting involved and learning more, visit S.P.I.N or contacting Corey Parris at Corey.R.Parris@uwsp.edu.
Kaitlyn Wanta
Reporter
Kaitlyn.M.Wanta@uwsp.edu
