2019 LYCOMING COLLEGE LC MAGAZINE SPRING

ATTRACTING TALENTED STUDENTS The John E. Morgan Endowed Scholarship Fund In an effort to bring attention to the entrepreneurial program and attract talented students to Lycoming, the John E. Morgan Foundation Inc. created an endowed scholarship fund to provide annually renewable scholarships for Lycoming students, with preference given to those who graduate from Tamaqua Area High School located in Tamaqua, Pa., or other high schools located in Schuylkill County, Pa., who are pursuing studies in the entrepreneurship program. The students will combine studies in entrepreneurship with any of the 40 majors offered at Lycoming. The funding is made possible through two grants totaling $1 million generously provided by the John E. Morgan Foundation Inc. “The high-impact education Lycoming provides has proven time and again to be life-changing for our students,” said Chip Edmonds, executive vice president at Lycoming. “It is our privilege to further the Morgan Foundation’s goals and priorities as they relate to educating central Pennsylvania’s next generation of leaders in business and society.” The College anticipates awarding the inaugural scholarships for the upcoming academic year. An entrepreneur’s passion lies within their major field of study, whether it is physics, art, modern languages, biology, or any of the many other majors and minors offered at Lycoming. We look to enhance a student’s career and life opportunities by providing additional tools for them to excel within their major field(s) of study in an entrepreneurial way, making them more competitive in the job market and in advancing their career. Marshall Welch III Stanley ’80 and Jolene Hall ’80 Sloter Endowed Chair in Entrepreneurship An Innovation Center Dare to Dream. Dare to Do. Not only is this the motto for The Campaign for a Greater Lycoming, it also captures the entrepreneurial spirit. Lycoming students are gaining insightful knowledge in their entrepreneurial courses, but they also need a place where they can begin to turn their dreams into reality. Space has been designated within the Academic Center on campus as a “beta” or test innovation center where students can use various equipment to hone their skills and flex their creativity. Just like any start-up business, the innovation center is in the beginning phase. After the concept is tested, a permanent home will be chosen so all students can gain easy access. “We’re building an applied learning laboratory from the ground up, starting with simple things like hand tools, computers, and a 3D printer, and encouraging our students enrolled in the entrepreneurial classes to explore and become comfortable in this new space,” said Welch. Entrepreneurship students will begin utilizing the innovation center during the fall 2019 semester. Partial funding for entrepreneurial co-curricular activities was made possible by the generosity of Larry Snyder ’68 and his wife, Christine. Larry, an accounting major while at Lycoming, is the owner and CEO of Imperial Stone Paving Corporation. He became involved with the entrepreneurship working group during the planning stages of the new minor and is pleased to see these studies enhanced by the creation of an innovation center. “Entrepreneurship and innovation are the life-blood of a successful and sustainable economy,” says Snyder. “The skills involved apply to any field of study, and to all types of business, professions, organizations, and processes. With improvements in technologies, innovation allows a business or organization to remain relevant in a fast-paced world. The innovation center at Lycoming will provide students with hands- on opportunities to translate entrepreneurial skills learned in the classroom into immediate action in a lab-like setting.” Snyder adds that the skills acquired in the program will provide students with a real differentiator in the job market. They will be better equipped to problem-solve, willing to take calculated risks to achieve results, and be more competitive. Snyder also believes that he would have benefited from such a program while at Lycoming. “The entrepreneurship program would have given me a greater understanding of my clients and would have helped me to anticipate their needs. Entrepreneurial skills are essential to me as a small business owner. We continually try to innovate to better serve customers, to become more competitive, and to improve the workplace for our employees.” Larry ’68 and Christine Snyder 19 www.lycoming.edu