Witt-Entrepeneurs
The Village Markets – Witt-Entrepreneurs alliance is entrepreneurship education that takes action and makes a difference.
The alliance creates student experiences that go far beyond the classroom and into the international landscape, while being a catalyst for positive change in the world. By learning more about Fair Trade and sustainable ventures, Wittenberg students will have the tools necessary to generate change for any cause or passion.
Founder of Village Markets, Jacob Schmalzle, was a graduate of Wittenberg (class of ’07). Having written his business plan with the guidance of the management faculty, that same plan is now being used as a hands-on case study for the university’s entrepreneurial program.
Many universities have programs that incorporate Fair Trade, but Wittenberg University is the first to incorporate a hands-on academic model through a private Fair Trade business so students graduate with several years of real work-experience on their resume.
As part of that entrepreneurial program, management students now directly engage the challenges of running a real business. The university hosts the Village Markets warehouse and student managers facilitate warehousing, fulfillment, new product development and marketing strategies for over 250 Fair Trade gifts.
One exciting student project is the creation of custom branded beaded leather bracelets for high schools and universities:
Click Here if you’d like to have fundraiser bracelets made for YOUR school!
When students graduate from Wittenberg’s Entrepreneurial Management program, they will have done so with credible, real-world, experience working for a philanthropic company already on their resume. Their contributions to our Fair Trade mission, in conjunction with the management curriculum, mold young leaders who are ready to ‘hit the ground running’ and be a positive change in the world.
Download/Open a .pdf copy of an article in the latest Witt Magazine that describes their new entrepreneurial program: Wittenberg University - Fair Trade Entrepreneurship
Also download/open a .pdf copy of Wittenberg's presentation at the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE):
Please visit the WittEntrepreneurs online to get more information about this dynamic educational opportunity!
