At College Park, An All-Encompassing Focus On Entrepreneurship

Students at the University of Maryland develop business pitches, seek patents for their research, pursue grants, and think beyond the traditional post-college job.

By Carrie Wells, The Baltimore Sun.

Foluke Tuakli hopped on a bicycle and weaved around her classroom at the University of Maryland, College Park, acting out the problems that cyclists encounter on the road. "I'm turning, I'm turning," she shrieked as the bike wobbled.

The demonstration was part of a student pitch for a bicycle GPS app in a freshman entrepreneurship class in the honors college. Other student groups had their own pitches: a new type of sustainable drinking fountain where water is squirted directly into the mouth, a Third World slum development project, and a day care center that emphasizes healthful eating habits.

The class is part of the vision of University of Maryland President Wallace D. Loh, who has made it his priority to establish the university as a hub of innovation and entrepreneurship — not just in the business school but in almost every discipline.

To read more, click here.