Coles County Entrepreneurship ClassE
Starting a business is the dream of many Americans...and the Coles County Entrepreneurship ClassE is poised to teach our youth about it!
Each student in the class will start their own business or develop a feasible business plan for future use, and learn first-hand about the opportunities and challenges of creating and running a new venture. This experiential learning class will have students tour thirty or more businesses, as well as learn from guest entrepreneurial speakers who will also serve as business mentors.
For more information or if you are interested in signing up for the Coles County Entrepreneurship ClassE, please click on the following links:
Informational Letter to Parents
Coles County Entrepreneurship ClassE
High School Entrepreneurship Class Highlights
These students can expect to meet and work with business leaders and organizations on a regular basis. They will also be using new ideas to form their own start-ups. This experiential learning process provides strategies that they didn’t know before, turning the class into a vital ingredient to their success.Through this program, we hope to create an environment that encourages students to remember their roots, resulting in potential business and job creation, thereby securing the future health and economic success of Coles County.
Our goal is to teach Entrepreneurship to junior and senior Charleston, Mattoon and Oakland High School students. Approximately 60 businesses have committed $159,500 over a three-year period to fund this county-wide experiential entrepreneurship class.
Jeanne Dau has been selected to be the teacher for this class. Dau, with the support of the Business Solutions Center at Eastern Illinois University, will also develop a business success network fostering interactions and relationships between students and community leaders, bankers, entrepreneurial mentors, and other resources in the county.
This class is made possible through the generous support of the community and business investors. Check out the list here: ClassE Investors
The Coles County Entrepreneurship ClassE strives to prepare youth to be responsible, enterprising individuals who are entrepreneurial thinkers and contribute to the economic development and sustainability of the eight county region.
ClassE is offered to high school juniors and seniors throughout area. It is a year long, two credit high school course that meets Monday-Friday morning in local businesses and changes location every nine weeks. (See schedule for meeting details)
ClassE Board Members
Bob Jones (President)
Joyce Madigan (President Elect)
Jon Fulton
Krista Jackley
Lance Landeck
Gary Philippi
Dr. Aldo Ruffalo
Chris Swing
Todd Vilardo
Jim Zimmer
