Priorities:La Salle University Student Priorities

Overview 

La Salle University is located in an innovation and entrepreneurial hotbed. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is one of the most dense university regions in the United States. As a lasallian school, we understand the values of innovation and entrepreneurship. As students, we believe that the values of innovation and entrepreneurship should flow consistently, regardless of your major. La Salle believes that in today’s competitive economic environment, people with entrepreneurial spirits will not only succeed in their chosen careers but also will drive business creation, growth, and job opportunities for the larger business community.

Calling All Students 

For the past few weeks, innovation fellow candidates interviewed multiple students to learn more about ways to increase innovation and entrepreneurship on campus. Using students perspectives as our guide, we have created strategies and tactics that we think will improve innovation and entrepreneurship on campus. Like any strategic plan, it requires careful planning and monitoring. In order for successful implementation of our strategies, we want students, faculty, and staff to continue building on the idea of innovation and entrepreneurship. If we work together, our vision will turn into reality and we will see a campus that supports innovation and entrepreneurship by incorporating our lasallian mission.

Strategy 1: Establishing Innovation & Entrepreneurship Across the Curriculum

Tactic 1: Adding More Innovational & Entrepreneurial Courses into the Curriculum

Students from the School of Business, Arts & Sciences and Nursing should be exposed to more courses that integrate the concept of innovation and entrepreneurship. Innovation applies not only to business students but to all. The real challenge is trying to merge the students academic focus into the concept of innovation and entrepreneurship. Students working towards a degree in business or science understand the importance of innovation and entrepreneurship.

The plan of attack to tackle this issue is currently being investigated in the form of creating more courses that are interdisciplinary in their nature. A current example of this type of course being implemented at La Salle would be Life Science Innovation. This class is open to students of all majors, and currently contains students from The School of Business, The School of Arts and Sciences, as well as The School of Nursing.

Tactic 2: Courses on Design Thinking 

This course should be offered to all students and provide an experience that encourages collaboration and design thinking concepts. Students should seek benefit in the course regardless of his or her major.

Tactic 3: Seeking Faculty & Administration Support (Strategic Planning) 

As students who seek the drive to push for innovation entrepreneurship on campus, we understand the need for support from faculty and administrators. As future fellows, we understand that in order for successful implementation of our tactics, administrators need to see our vision. Therefore, we will soon embark on a unique strategic five year plan that we as fellows will propose to faculty and administrators. This plan will not only include our vision in regards to innovation & entrepreneurship on campus, but also tactics that we think will harness a culture of sustainable creativity.

Strategy 2: Establishing Long-Term Communication Paths between Engineering and Business 

Tactic 1: Promoting On Campus Help from the School of Arts & Sciences

Direct Emails of Professors (whose interests are what interests you) are posted on the school website for easy access). Therefore making it easier for students who have ideas to just contact those professors or faculty that have more information about that student’s inquiry and could further expand on that idea of there’s

Tactic 2: Creating Networking Groups 

For like minded people, these networking groups would allow for people to exchange those ideas, and also gives that person a chance to see who else had the same idea or something similar and then if things lead from one to another, those students can form a group on campus and have the help of that certain professor (with some familiarity with engineering) who has more information on going about that idea help and push for that idea to come alive.

Tactic 3: Refining the Ideas through Communication 

With whatever idea you have, having connections to faculty and other students after the creation of your idea is what makes your connection between engineering and business stronger.Having an open mind with who you know can allow your idea to grow and your innovative mind to expand as well.

Strategy 3: Enhancing the Visuals of what Innovation & Entrepreneurialism Are 

Tactic 1: Creating Organizations that Promote Innovative Thinking 

Creating student organizations that not only teach and inspire innovation but give students the chance to take the wheel with projects that will give them hands on experience dealing with real life problems and allow them to solve them.  (This includes: creating small business ideas and taking the steps to create them, and identifying problems within the world and creating think tanks to attempt to solve them)

Tactic 2: Competitions that Provide Incentives for Creative Idea Making  Organizations that Promote Innovative Thinking 

Challenges built to have students compete with each other for prizes based on varying concepts from which they will develop ideas and attempt to create them and promote them.

Tactic 3: Changing Curriculum and Course Material  

Changing some of the course material in class to help promote innovation is key. Obtaining the aid of teachers to help add some innovative style learning to everyday classes regardless of what the course is.

​Related Links

Current Fellows

Kenneth Brewer

Onesimus Morrison

Trans Lualhati