U.A. RANKS IN TOP 100 OF
UNIVERSITIES IN ENTREPRENEURSHIP
EDUCATION IN U.S.

Akron , Thursday, April 15, 2004 – The University
of Akron is among the top U.S. colleges and universities for entrepreneurs, according to the May 2004 issue of Entrepreneur magazine.

In its second annual entrepreneurship survey of universities and colleges from across the country, The University of Akron’s entrepreneurship program is listed as one of 13 "first tier" programs at regional universities.

"This is a significant step for our program and proves that we can compete with the leading entrepreneurship programs from all over the U.S. ," said Dr. Todd Finkle, Associate Professor of Management and a Fellow at the Fitzgerald Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies. Finkle added, “We finished in the top 25 of entrepreneurship programs with an emphasis in entrepreneurial education last year and this year we moved up to the “first tier” of regional schools. We won’t stop until we are among the top ranked national programs in the country.” According to Finkle the success of the program is a unified effort of faculty, staff, students and government and business professionals.

Other regional universities to make Entrepreneur's "first tier" are Ball State University , University of Oregon , California State University, Fresno and St. Louis University . Ball State University was ranked as the 10th best program in the country by program directors, faculty and alumni.

The rankings for the article were performed by TechKnowledge Point Corporation of Santa Barbara , California . The company ranked 800 entrepreneurship programs and divided them into four categories: national, regional, emphasis, and limited curriculum. More than 70 criteria were used in the evaluation process, including course offerings, teaching and research faculty, business-community outreaches, other entrepreneurial initiatives, research centers and institutes, degrees and certificates offered, competitions, honors, tangible venture development, access to capital, and faculty and alumni evaluations.

The Fitzgerald Institute for Entrepreneurial Studies was launched in 1996 with a $2.5 million grant from William Fitzgerald, the former president and chief operating officer of Cooper Tire & Rubber Co., and a UA alumnus. Through the institute, students learn about launching or buying a business, franchising, corporate entrepreneurship, family businesses, working for a fast growth company, growing small businesses and technology transfer.

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