WSU Starting Entrepreneur Program In Greensburg

Fri, January 20, 2012

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KMUW / Briana O’Higgins

Wichita State University’s Center for Entrepreneurship in partnership with 4 other state and federal organizations will offer a program in developing rural businesses starting next month.

WSU partnered with the Kiowa County Economic Development Corp, the USDA, the city of Greensburg and Network Kansas to develop ‘Growing Rural Businesses’.

The two month long certificate program is intended to help Kansas business owners and entrepreneurs flourish in their rural environment. Dr. Tim Pett, Directer of WSU’s entrepreneurship program says Greensburg initiated the partnership,

The Directer of WSU’s Center for Entrepreneurship, Dr. Tim Pett,  said Greensburg initiated the partnership.

“We felt our resources, our faculty would be a good fit to address some of the rural problems facing Kansas Communities,” said Pett, “so working together we developed a certificate program that we think are tools that would be useful for these businesses.”

A 2007 tornado destroyed 95 percent of Greensburg, killing 11 people. Since the city has been recognized for it’s perseverance and innovation in rebuilding.

“I think it is a good fit for all the stories we know about the difficulties they have faced,” said Pett, “yet at the same time they were able to pull themselves up and develop their community, and surprisingly people didn’t leave.”

“They rebuilt, they restored what they are doing, businesses came back, but Greensburg is probably not different than any other rural community in Kansas, and so there is a part we can play in that.”

Pett says he hopes the WSU Center for Entrepreneurship will be able to offer the program in other Kansas communities in the future.