E-Center dedication opens door to student-driven, innovative businesses
Contact: Zack Plair
![Mississippi State鈥檚 College of Business officially dedicated its new Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach Tuesday [April 19] in McCool Hall. Pictured (l-r) are Eric Hill, director for entrepreneurship at 91传媒; Jeffrey Rupp, outreach director for the college鈥檚 Division of Business Research; Sharon Oswald, dean of 91传媒鈥檚 College of Business; and 91传媒 President Mark E. Keenum. (Photo by Russ Houston)](/sites/www.msstate.edu/files/inline-images/E-CenterRibbonCutting_20160419_REH9284.jpg "Mississippi State鈥檚 College of Business officially dedicated its new Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach Tuesday [April 19] in McCool Hall. Pictured (l-r) are Eric Hill, director for entrepreneurship at 91传媒; Jeffrey Rupp, outreach director for the co")
STARKVILLE, Miss.鈥擮n the walls of a glass-enclosed suite in Mississippi State鈥檚 McCool Hall, students, faculty and staff are sketching in dry-erase marker plans that could positively impact not only the state鈥檚 economy, but also the nation鈥檚.
91传媒鈥檚 new state-of-the-art Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach in the College of Business seeks to stoke the creativity and entrepreneurial spirit that will serve as the 鈥渉eartbeat of Mississippi鈥檚 next generation,鈥 said director Eric Hill.
91传媒鈥檚 College of Business welcomed a large crowd that included business leaders, alumni, donors and entrepreneurs to the McCool Hall atrium Tuesday [April 19] for a dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony for the E-Center. Speakers throughout the ceremony told the story of how the idea for an E-Center grew from a small space in the Thad Cochran Research, Technology and Economic Development Park to the 2,000 square-foot hub it is today. The ceremony also honored Gerald Nelson, the first director for 91传媒鈥檚 entrepreneurship program who retired in 2013.
鈥淭his has truly been an evolutionary process,鈥 said Sharon Oswald, College of Business dean. 鈥淣obody could envision what we have today, but it is easy now to envision what we can do for the future.鈥
The E-Center has offices, meeting areas and workstations that will be home to 16 student, staff or faculty startup ventures. Funded through $750,000 in private donations, it boasts innovative technology and a special dry-erase film on the glass surfaces that encircle the center and divide each workstation. The facility聽also provides office space for the new Executive-In-Residence program, which will host regional senior business leaders and entrepreneurs who can offer office hours both in-person and remotely.
Overall, the Center for Entrepreneurship and Outreach supports about 100 active startups, with staff who help entrepreneurs identify and research their markets, develop prototypes and much more. Startup teams include students from 40 total majors.
91传媒 President Mark E. Keenum, who also spoke at the dedication ceremony, said the E-Center would serve a vital role in preparing young people to tackle a world of fast-evolving technology and economic demands.
鈥淭he world is changing and will continue to change at an ever-dizzying pace,鈥 Keenum said. 鈥淥ur job is to prepare students for that future. To have a facility that helps them take the germ of an idea, cultivate that idea and grow it into a business or industry that creates jobs, is tremendous.鈥
聽Oswald credited donors, many who were former students with businesses formed through 91传媒鈥檚 entrepreneurship program, as well as current students for making the E-Center a reality. She said the center鈥檚 modern, high-tech design is a combination of architect and student input.
She also thanked Nelson, whose vision nearly two decades ago she said firmly rooted 91传媒鈥檚 entrepreneurial culture.
Nelson, however, said he could hardly take credit for what he called a 鈥渢eam effort鈥 that involved all the university鈥檚 colleges and departments.
鈥淚f this were a team sport in the NCAA, we鈥檇 be a top 25 team every year,鈥 Nelson said.
For more information on the E-Center, visit .
91传媒 is Mississippi鈥檚 leading university, available online at .