I.                    Entrepreneurship Conference

Conduct a statewide entrepreneurship conference: October, 2006, to showcase best practice communities and approaches

II.                  Creating Entrepreneurial Communities (CEC)                

CEC pilot communities have been selected for an intensive week-long training program involving the highly successful E2 (Energizing Entrepreneurship) curriculum from the Heartland Center, in Nebraska.  Conduct training: February, 2007.

Through a community development approach of capacity-building, collaboration, and asset capitalization, this training helps builds community vitality by fostering a sustainable entrepreneurial environment. Successful entrepreneurial communities have increased opportunities for youth wishing to remain in the community, possess a more diverse economic base, and experience greater community vitality and civic engagement.

Selected community teams will be learning about entrepreneurship as an economic development strategy.  As community leaders learn entrepreneurial attributes and practices for conducting public and civic business they can:      1) be more effective and innovative in responding to community needs; and   2) increase strategic community collaborations to enhance an entrepreneurial climate within their community. 

Participating community teams were selected through an application process based upon the following criteria: 1) the team's economic vision and goals for entrepreneurship in their community; 2) team composition and organization; 3) the community's resources and readiness to support entrepreneurial efforts; and 4) the community's uniqueness as a model for other Michigan communities. 

Nine community teams, consisting of eight to ten core team members, were selected to participate based on their interest in entrepreneurial development, existing community capacity, and inclusion of team members from multiple sectors. The pilot teams are: IoniaCounty, St. Clair County, BoyneCity, the NorthernLakesEconomic Alliance(East Jordan, Charlevoix), Northeast MichiganCouncil of Governments (the counties of Alcona, Alpena, and Presque Isle), Greater South Haven, MarineCity, NewaygoCounty, and MeridianTownship. These teams are geographically distributed across the Lower Peninsula (there were no applications this first year from the Upper Peninsula), and are predominantly rural, reflecting the pool of applications. Each pilot community has committed at least $5,000 to participate.

III.                Community Coaching and Mentoring                   

Conduct "community coaching" for pilot communities to institutionalize concepts through asset mapping, strategic planning and coalition building. (Feb - Sept, 2007).

IV.               Peer to Peer Learning

Conduct 2-day community "peer to peer learning" retreat at Edward Lowe Foundation's Big Rock Valley training facility. (Oct/Nov. 2007)

V.                 Share Lessons Learned