Drew.edu: Freeman Seminar - Dr. Jo Anne Murphy

Seminar Description

Case Studies in Black Entrepreneurship:
The Entrepreneur is the Business

(click here for the biography of William M. Freeman)

Why do African-Americans choose to be entrepreneurs? Is entrepreneurship a viable alternate path to success for African-Americans, as opposed to the conventional corporate ladder? What does it mean to be a Black entrepreneur in 21st Century USA? This seminar explores the world of African-American entrepreneurship as a dynamic force within the American economy and exposes students, face to face, to the real life lessons and wisdom of some of the more experienced and successful minority entrepreneurs in this country.

Students will be expected to glean from this live exposure the insights and knowledge that will be applicable to diverse aspects of their lives as future professionals, whether or not entrepreneurship is the path of choice after reaching their academic goals.

Following a brief overview of the historical background of African-American entrepreneurship provided in the seminar textbook by Juliet E.K. Walker, there will be a series of sessions with visiting entrepreneurs from both New Jersey and other parts of the U.S. For example, students will have an opportunity to learn from two highly successful Black entrepreneurs linked with the automotive industry in Detroit and listed among Black Enterprises Top 100 Black Businesses in the United States. A well known Madison-based entrepreneur and leader in New Jersey’s 100 Black Men will expose students to his expertise as well as that of his network in that organization and others. A highlight of the seminar will be a session with the renowned author of the seminar textbook for the term: Juliet E.K. Walker – The History of Black Business in America: Capitalism, Race, Entrepreneurship.

Please note that this seminar is not about the mechanics of entrepreneurship. It is about capturing an understanding of the special skills, mode of thinking and action, as well as the dynamics required to be a successful entrepreneur. It is also about taking this information and transforming it into practical application, challenging students to draw from skills acquired throughout their liberal arts education at Drew to analyze, process and adapt diverse perspectives and experiences to their own specific needs, regardless of the chosen path of professional endeavor. The focus of the seminar and the learning methodologies utilized are par excellence experiential approaches to the field of liberal arts.

Some of the opportunities to be provided to students:

to discuss with persons who have successfully met the challenges of entrepreneurship and learned significant lessons in the process;
to relate with entrepreneurs in social settings with the challenge of applying networking, communication and social skills to meet specific goals from that type of exposure;
to discover how they may utilize the information and experience gleaned from the experts of entrepreneurship to shape their own lives and career paths;
to explore with these entrepreneurs the aspects of their lives that prepared them to begin functioning in a globalized society and economy.

The goals of this course are as follows:

Familiarize students with the experience and skills of contemporary Black entrepreneurs
Focus on the human aspects of entrepreneurship from a liberal arts perspective
Encourage entrepreneurial thinking with regards to students’ careers and lives following completion of formal education
Enjoy the experiences and exposure!