Changes

In addition to academic work, business students can join the Entrepreneurship Club and deepen their practical knowledge by co-managing various college owned businesses.  The Entrepreneurship Club aims to provide a conduit for students to access relevant entrepreneurial resources, network with prominent community entrepreneurs, and share ideas.  To this end, the Club is dedicated to building further understanding about new or small businesses, and about entrepreneurship in all businesses.  To deepen their practical knowledge, students have opportunities to participate in internships and service learning projects at the ABC’s Garden of Eden.  This type of learning allows students to apply knowledge and skills in a real-world setting.  Through these experiences, students deepen knowledge, build workplace skills, and come to better understand the world in all its complexities.

ABC business school faculty will participate in the Scott Ford Center for Entrepreneurship and Community Development’s initiatives to train entrepreneurs to start businesses in underserved communities.  The faculty will work with student organizations to build and cultivate relationships and to increase campus awareness of entrepreneurial thinking and opportunities.  The faculty will also collaborate with the Director of Career Planning and Placement to provide an entrepreneurial perspective to Careers Services initiatives.  In using the Center as a service portal, the faculty will network with already successful businesses and business support agencies in the area and surrounding area.  The purpose of the Center involves establishing a network of mentors and resources for start-up and existing businesses or community residents who are interested business ownership.

Dr. Howard O. Gibson, Dean of the School of Business and Director of Entrepreneurship leads the ABC’s faculty entrepreneurship initiative.  Dr. Gibson and the faculty will co-manage the Center’s microenterprise loan fund, which will serve as a catalyst to spur business development in core urban areas.

ABC does not have a technology transfer office in the conventional sense.  However, the College hopes the entrepreneurial capital graduates will positively transform the local business climate.  In this way, rather than commercializing research outputs, the College hopes to add to the entrepreneurial vigor of its community through college and alumni owned business ventures. 

Another invaluable industry collaboration is with '''Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation''' and '''''the Foundation of Entrepreneurship'''''.  These two organizations will co-fund ABC’s Icehouse Project.

The '''''Scott Ford Center for Entrepreneurship and Community Development''''' will be recognized as an innovator in educating and serving students and clients in economic development.  In addition, the Center will become a catalyst for development in Little Rock and beyond.  The design of the Center is a blended model using a micro-enterprise development process through business education.  This process will combine the best practices in this generation of revenue and social-value to educate and train social entrepreneurs for the twenty-first century.

In addition, ABC also operates several community businesses.  These include '''''the Auto Baptism Car Wash''''' and '''''the Garden of Eden Fresh Market'''''.  All the businesses supported by ABC serve as a training ground for its students.  In turn, the College reinvests the profits to restore the surrounding neighborhood.

The revitalization of Arkansas Baptist College (ABC) has been both innovative and entrepreneurial. In February 2006, ABC’s enrollment was fewer than 200 students, and the college appeared on the verge of losing its accreditation. Five years later, ABC has a new men's residence facility, which houses nearly 200 students, along with a soon to be completed women’s residence hall.