NC REAL Staff
Tom Brown Executive Director Malinda Todd Associate Director Shannon Gallagher Eastern Regional Coordinator
Daisy Reeder Finance and Operations Manager |
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| REAL to Offer Two Spring Workshops of Special Interest to Teachers
REAL Entrepreneurship serves both adult and youth markets. The focus this spring will be on youth and REAL will offer two trainings that private and public school teachers will find particularly valuable. "Building Entrepreneurship Skills" (BES) is open to instructors interested in incorporating entrepreneurship education into existing business curricula. It will be offered March 21-22 at the REAL offices in Raleigh. The workshop focuses on building skills such as self-assessment, creative thinking, financial literacy, business planning and operations. You will learn how to engage young people and create interest and excitement for entrepreneurship. Topics to be covered include: - Business planning . . . the key to a successful enterprise
- Business simulations
- Action learning to make your program powerful
- Opportunity identification
- Financial literacy
- Operations
- Self-assessment
- Student/teacher presentations
- Evaluation
"Real Innovative Student Enterprises" (RISE) is open to instructors interested in teaching youth to start and run economically viable enterprises. The workshop will be June 7 at a location to be determined in the western part of the state. Details to follow. Especially when coupled with BES techniques, RISE actively engages students in starting a venture that yields a profit. There is no better learning motivation for youth (or adults, for that matter) to explore business opportunities than the prospect of profit. Participants in the workshop will learn how to set up and operate school-based businesses that place students in positions of responsibility as they learn entrepreneurial skills, group problem solving and effective decision making. Examples of topics to be covered include: - Administrative support for a school-based enterprise
- Action learning to make your school-based enterprise successful
- Mistakes to avoid with your school-based enterprise
- School-based enterprises as means to help teachers and students meet state content standards
- Business planning (and replanning) - the keys to a successful enterprise.
To register for either of the workshops, click here. |
State Agencies Present Small Business Seminars
NC REAL helps connect our constituents with the huge range of valuable information available to current and would-be small business owners. The NC Department of Revenue, NC Industrial Commission and the NC Department of Commerce will present seminars titled "Business Essentials" during the first quarter of 2013. Each agency will cover basic requirements to help businesses in North Carolina understand the laws and obligations necessary to be in compliance with current laws and regulations.
Department of Revenue - Covers the basics of tax compliance ranging from registering your business, withholding, sales and use tax requirements.
Industrial Commission - Covers workers' compensation laws and the types of businesses that are required to carry workers' compensation insurance and how to obtain it.
Employment Security - Covers unemployment insurance laws, employment taxes and the appeals process.
The business skills seminars run through March and you can register by clicking here. Don't miss these presentations about important matters that concern every small business owner. |
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IDEA Funding Opportunities Available
 NC IDEA is an organization committed to supporting business innovation and economic advancement in North Carolina. It will host a series of information sessions in February to present its grant program for NC-based entrepreneurs. Companies focused on software, information technology, medical diagnostics and devices, material sciences and green technologies are encouraged to apply. There are two pre-proposal deadlines for the spring 2013 cycle: February 22 (early deadline) and March 8 (final deadline). Interested applicants can attend any of four information sessions prior to the deadlines. For more information about the sessions click here. |
| UNC Chapel Hill Adds "Introduction to Entrepreneurship" to Curriculum
North Carolina Community Colleges have been focused on developing entrepreneurs for many years, but recently four-year colleges and universities have joined the effort. For some institutions, this marks a major change in focus and one that is being warmly received by students investigating career options.  | |
Buck Goldstein, John Akin and Chancellor Holden Thorp with "Introduction to Entrepreneurship" class |
For example, Economics 125, also known as "Introduction to Entrepreneurship" at UNC Chapel Hill, wrapped up the fall semester for its 300 students on December 4 to the sounds of Pink Floyd's, "Another Brick in the Wall." As Chancellor Holden Thorp noted, the song's theme of teen rebellion resonated in a course designed to inspire students to knock down artificial walls that sometimes separate business programs from the liberal arts.
Throughout the semester Carolina professors from many different fields joined an eclectic group of outside speakers as guest lecturers. Speakers ranged from AOL co-founder, Steve Case, to Teach for America founder, Wendy Kopp, to Big Ten Conference Commissioner, Jim Delany. The class is, in part, a reaction to high demand for spots in UNC's Minor in Entrepreneurship track, which accepts 100 students per year. Last year, there were almost 300 applicants for the 100 spots.
Chancellor Thorp is an entrepreneur himself, having started two chemistry-based ventures. He also is co-author of a book used in the class, Engines of Innovation - the Entrepreneurial University in the 21st Century. A recurring theme in the book and class is the indispensable role of a liberal arts education, not only preparing students for jobs that do not yet exist, but also in giving entrepreneurs the intellectual tools they need to develop ideas for new businesses that will house those jobs. Read more about entrepreneurship at UNC by clicking here. |
Stressed Entrepreneurs Are Still Happier Than Other Workers
 An article in Business News Daily states that new research has found that entrepreneurs say that although stress and worry are parts of the job, they have many other positive experiences at work that more than make up for the challenges. In particular, entrepreneurs say they are more likely than other workers to report that they learned or did something new in the past day.
"One possible explanation for these differences may be that the personal and financial risks involved in starting and running a business lead to additional worry and stress," the Gallup researchers said. "For example, entrepreneurs are significantly more likely than other workers to be uninsured and to struggle to afford necessary health care and medicine, which may cause them to have higher levels of stress and worry."
The research is based on responses from 273,175 interviews. Read the article by clicking here. |
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REAL Healthcare Success Story in Eastern North Carolina
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Kira Boyd, co-owner of Synergy |
Kira Boyd, co-owner of Synergy Physical Therapy and Sports Management in Jacksonville, NC with her husband, John, heard about NC REAL through a newsletter from the local Small Business Center. She knew she needed to write a business plan to move her plans forward, but she also needed some help to pull it all together.
Pete Ellis, a business counselor and REAL facilitator at Coastal Carolina Community College, helped her put thoughts to paper using action learning techniques. Through REAL, Kira found a network of likeminded entrepreneurs in her community.
"One thing that surprised me was how many people came to the course thinking starting a business was easy. REAL teaches the realistic aspects of starting a business and focused me on developing concrete plans and numbers," she said.
Her business is located in renovated space that had been a retail store prior to its grand re-opening in December. She started her business with three full-time and one part-time staff. Synergy offers traditional physical therapy as well as services unique to the area such as super pulsed laser therapy.
She plans to grow and add staff along the way. She also wants to expand beyond the traditional insurance reimbursement model to provide specialized services on a cash basis. She is raising community awareness of injuries such as concussions. As provider for the Jacksonville Roller Derby League, she has plenty of opportunity to practice.
Read more about another successful REAL graduate's business by clicking here. |
| Robeson Community College Combines Entrepreneurship and Environment in the "GreenZone"
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Students are growing cabbage, among other crops, at the GreenZone. |
NC REAL has partnered with Robeson Community College over the past year to support entrepreneurship. On November 9, the College launched the "GreenZone," a hands-on learning lab where students learn the importance of sustainability in agriculture and energy. The GreenZone is an initiative of the BioNetwork, an education and workforce development program launched by the NC Community College system. The GreenZone will be a "showcase of sustainability," said Ed Hunt, coordinator of the BioNetwork BioAg Center. The project will give students and farmers "opportunities to thrive" while preserving North Carolina's rich agricultural heritage.
The project includes a student-run greenhouse, raised planting beds and solar panels. "Robeson County is becoming known as the solar farm county in the state," said Senator Michael Walters. Connecting the region's strong tradition of agriculture with the technologies of the future will bring the project "full circle as we go forward," he said.
Read more about the GreenZone by clicking here.
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| Link of the Month
 TiE Carolinas is a nonprofit organization with a mission to foster and support entrepreneurship in the Carolinas. The organization has three main objectives: 1) To network and to facilitate networking among members
2) To foster entrepreneurship and to nurture entrepreneurs
3) To help members integrate with the mainstream community
TiE members are entrepreneurs or aspiring entrepreneurs, professionals and students interested in networking with mentors and industry veterans. There is a fee to become a member, but benefits include access to TiE events and conferences and one-to-one mentoring opportunities available throughout the year. Learn more about what TiE Carolinas has to offer by clicking here. |
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