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ENTR 103: The Entrepreneurial Experience
Wednesday’s 6:30pm-8:30pm
HAL 112 / Fall 2009
Contact Information:
Mr. David Impellizzeri
Student Life and Learning Office
Box #3154
724.458.3783 (office)
impellizzerid@gcc.edu
Office Hours:
M:
T:
W:
TH:
F:
10am – 11am, 2pm – 3pm
8am – 10am
10am – 11am
9am – 11am
10am – 11am
I am also available by appointment if one of the above timeslots does not work for you. Please email or call.
A. Course Description:
The Entrepreneurial Experience is a lab course that uses selected business instruments and experiential
learning exercises, assisting students to apply content learned in ENTR 101 and 102, including
spreadsheets, virtual meetings, key Internet skills such as social networking, and personal information
management. The instructional process models entrepreneurial thought and practice. Students move
progressively and incrementally from safe, grade-oriented behavior to moderate risk-taking, applicationoriented learning behavior, culminating in an adventure experience. (From the GCC Bulletin)
In terms of communicating the unique temperament of ENTR 103 to you, experience is perhaps the
operative word in our course title. As mentioned above, this course is designed in some way as an
experiential “lab” for your ENTR 101 course. As such, our curriculum includes non-traditional features,
such as, contact with existing entrepreneurs, reflective writing assignments (as opposed to research
papers), interactive classroom discussions, problem solving and team building exercises, an outdoor
adventure capstone event, among other things.
There are two other aims for this course that will undergird the above description: one, to examine how
Christian faith informs one’s “secular” calling in the world of business and entrepreneurship, and two, to
explore the practical implications of the mandate Christian stewardship places upon us to be faithful in
the learning enterprise of higher education. The first addresses how God has uniquely designed you, and
the second addresses our responsibility to move from a grade-centered approach to a learning-centered
approach to academics and life.
B. Texts Used in the Course:
(Only 1 additional book to purchase for this course!)
1. StrengthsQuest: Discover and Develop Your Strengths in Academics, Career, and Beyond, by
Donald O. Clifton and Edward “Chip” Anderson with Laurie A. Schreiner, Gallup Press, 2006.
(This book must be purchased brand new because of the code inside for the StrengthsFinder Test, a
code which can only be used once.)
2. Creating the Enterprise, by William B. Gartner and Marlene G. Bellamy, 1st ed., Thomson, SouthWestern, 2009. (Required for ENTR 101.)
3. The Outrageous Idea of Academic Faithfulness, by Donald Optiz and Derek Melleby, Brazos
Press, 2007. (You do not have to purchase this book! It will be available on reserve in the Buhl
Library. Mention the course title and my last name to use the book in the library for up to 2 hours.
Only a small portion of this material is required for reading in this course. Although, it is a
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tremendous book for understanding the purpose of college, how to integrate Christian faith in a
substantive way, among other things.)
C. Entrepreneurship Department Core Competencies:
1. CC #2 – Entrepreneurial Traits and Behaviors –
Understands the personal traits/behaviors associated with successful entrepreneurial performance.
(Ethical leadership, self-assessment and self-management, integration of personal faith into
life/profession.)
2. CC #4 – Risk Management –
Understands how to identify, assess, accept, and then manage appropriate levels of risk. (What is
risk, risk assessment processes, risk management strategies.)
3. CC #7 – Communication and Interpersonal Skills –
Understands concepts, strategies, and systems needed to interact effectively with others. (Business
writing and presentation, group/team work, conflict management and resolution)
D. Course Objectives: When you finish this course should be able to:
1. Self-assessment and Self-understanding – enumerate your talents, flow states, and vital engagements
and explain how they are relevant to the traits and behaviors of entrepreneurs and your
entrepreneurial aspirations.
2. Self-affirmation – elaborate on the relationship of self-confidence/self-belief to social relationships
and risk-taking germane to an entrepreneurial life and demonstrate a healthy level of risk-taking and
courage.
3. Self-regulation – display initiative (recognizing that it is ultimately you who must take responsibility
for your choices, attitudes, actions and life and that no one else is responsible to do for you what you
are reasonably able to do yourself), explain your approach to the goal strivings process, exude a
growth mindset that is open to new people and experiences, and describe your approach to being an
active learner, i.e., one who takes primary responsibility for what one learns in college and in life.
4. Integrity and Character – enumerate and describe key aspects of the entrepreneurial life wherein
integrity and character is especially relevant, such as, conflict management, offering negative and
positive feedback, personal motivations for work, etc.
5. Teamwork – identify key components of working collaboratively with others and demonstrate
behaviors inherent to being a productive and life-giving team member.
6. Integration of Christian Faith – expound upon what it means for you to be a faithful steward in your
present calling as a student and future calling as an entrepreneur.
E. Topics and Assignments:
“Topics” will be covered on the corresponding class date. “Assignments” are what you are expected to
complete following the class on the given dates.
Topics or assignments are subject to change to better suit the purposes of the course.
Week 1: September 2nd
Topics:
Introductions, Clifton StrengthsFinder Test (CSFT), StrengthsQuest (SQ) Intro
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Assignments for Next Week:

SQ Preface, pp. 1-5, Ch. 2, Ch. 3 (intro only) (14 pages of reading)

Journal 1 – Feedback From My Community (FFMC)
[Submit on September 16th, but bring to class on September 9th]

Journal 2 – What enterprising traits and behaviors are referenced or inferred from Gartner Ch.
1? Which of these traits/behaviors do you most consistently practice? With which do you most
struggle?
[Submit on September 16th, but bring to class on September 9th]
Week 2: September 9th
Topics:
Reflection, Strengths Approach, FFMC, SQ & Being an Entrepreneur
Assignments for Next Week:

Journal 3 – Read Flow States and Vital Engagement essays (class handout) –
(1) Describe one area of your life in which you experience flow states, but not vital
engagement. What factors are involved in your experience that characterizes it as “flow”?
(2) Describe one area of your life in which you experience vital engagement. What factors
are involved in your experience that characterizes it as vital engagement? (3) What strengths
do you believe you are utilizing in your respective experiences of flow and vital
engagements?

Journal 4 – Read Outrageous Idea of Academic Faithfulness (OIAF) Intro & pp. 14-15, 18-20 (on
reserve in Buhl library)

First 4 journal entries are to be submitted next class.

Bring Career Direct Assessment (CSO test) results to class
Week 3: September 16th
Topics:
Meaning Making (Flow, Vital Engagement, Optimism, Attributions, Risk-taking,
“Am I an Entrepreneur?”), Academic Faithfulness: Grades vs. Learning,
Conducting an Interview
Portable Initiative
Assignments for Next Week:

Read SQ Ch. 4

Prepare questions for Entrepreneur Interview
Entrepreneur Interviews – Monday, September 21st and Tuesday, September 22nd
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Week 4: September 23rd
Topics:
Strengths, Relationships, Communication and Conflict
Portable Initiative
Assignments for Next Week:

Journal 5 – Use an I-Statement in a real life situation with another person.

Read SQ Ch. 5 – Select 2 action items for strengths development from 2 of your 5 top themes of
talent.

Complete Interview Reflection Paper and Capstone Reflection Paper
Capstone – Saturday, September 26th, 8:30am – 8:00pm
Week 5: September 30th
Topics:
Debrief Capstone, Strengths Development
Assignments for Next Week:

Journal 6 – Read OIAF Ch. 8 (on reserve in Buhl Library)

Read Goal Strivings Essay
Week 6: October 7th
Topics:
Academic Faithfulness, Life-long Learning and Entrepreneurship
Portable Initiative
Assignments for Next Week:

Extra Credit Journal – Goal Strivings Essay
F. Explanation of Assignments and Grading:
1. StrengthsFinder Self-Assessment
a.
Taking the Instrument – We will take the online self-assessment instrument together on the first
day of class.
b. Feedback from My Community (Journal Entry) – You will need to get feedback from 3 different
types of people who know you well and care for you, namely, (1) a peer/friend, (2) a family
member, (3) a mentor/supervisor. See class handout for more details.
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2. Journal Entries
a.
Where are these journals?
The SQ website provides you with an online journal. You will make all your journal entries
there. When the time comes for you to submit these, you will print the journal entries and
submit a paper copy. Your name, top 5 themes of talent, and entry date should
automatically be on the page when you print it.
b. Why use this format?

It is a more casual forum than creating a Word document, thus feeling more like a journal
than a formal academic assignment.

It encourages the use of technology and familiarity with the SQ website resources.

It is less cumbersome for me to transport 25 papers than 25 journals at a time.

Reading typed documents is much easier for me than reading handwritten ones.
c. Journal Standards: What makes for a quality journal entry?
Each journal entry when printed must be no less than a half page and no more than a full
page. Refer to section E. of the syllabus, class handouts, or verbal instructions for further
details/expectations of each journal entry.
3. Reading Quizzes
You will receive several unannounced, objective (non-essay) reading quizzes throughout the course.
4. Entrepreneur Interview and Reflection Paper
a.
Interview – I will provide you with a list of interview questions organized according to our three
Entrepreneurship Department Core Competencies (#’s 2, 4, and 7). You will need to select and
arrange the questions you would like to ask your entrepreneur in your 40-50 minute interview.
You may create some, not all, of your own questions to suite your needs and interests; however, all
of your questions during the first 40 minutes of your interview must be related to our three core
competencies for this course. If you have interviewed your entrepreneur for 40 minutes based
on the three core competencies for ENTR 103, you may spend the remaining 10 minutes asking
him/her questions pertaining to any of the other 5 core competencies of the Entrepreneurship
Department.
b. Reflection Paper (3-4 pages) – The purpose of this paper is to synthesize your learning from this
whole assignment (i.e., the interview, comparing your interview to your classmates, and your
reflections on all of it). Your reflection essay is should not be a rote, question-by-question
regurgitation of your interview. An ideal submission will be a synthesis of your impressions of
your entrepreneur’s comments/experiences and a comparison to what your classmates’
entrepreneurs conveyed to them. I will provide you with a guide for how to write this reflection
paper at a later point. This paper should be no less than 3 full pages and no more than 4 full
pages.
5. Capstone
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a.
Challenge Course Participation – You will be evaluated for your attitude, level of engagement,,
teamwork, and willingness to take risks relative to your physical abilities and comfort level with
each initiative.
b. Capstone Reflection Paper (3-4 pages) – This paper should be no less than 3 full pages and no
more than 4 full pages. Further instructions and explanations of this assignment will be provided
at a later date.
c. Disabilities: The capstone assignment involves a day-long experience on a challenge
course that includes low and high ropes initiatives. If you have a serious medical
disability (of a physical or psychological nature) that would prevent or inhibit you from
any or all of the challenge course experience, please see me (Mr. David Impellizzeri) no
later than Wednesday, September 9th regarding a possible alternative capstone
assignment.
6. Grading
a.
Journal Entries
15%
b. Reading Quizzes
10%
c. Attendance and Participation
10%
d. Interview Reflection Paper
25%
e. Challenge Course Participation (Evaluations) 15%
f.
Capstone Reflection Paper
A
B+
B
BC+
C
CD+
D
DF
25%
100% - 90.00%
89.99% - 88.00%
87.99% - 82.00%
81.99% - 80.00%
79.99% - 78.00%
77.99% - 72.00%
71.99% - 70.00%
69.99% - 68.00%
67.99% - 62.00%
61.99% - 60.00%
59.99% and below
G. Attendance and Participation:
Technology is an incredible tool that can aid in the learning process and one with which you will need to
be quite familiar as a professional, yet it also introduces a plethora of potential distractions that can
interfere with learning and working. As a direct result of the unique nature of the ENTR 103 course,
internet use is prohibited during class unless I specifically instruct the class to do otherwise. I realize a
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number of your other classes will permit and possibly even encourage in-class internet use. However,
due to the unique purposes and design of this course (i.e., because it is experiential), (1) active
engagement (in discussions and activities), (2) interacting with fellow classmates, and (3) being “fully
present” in the group experience is paramount for our course objectives. This is the criteria upon which
your participation will be evaluated. If there is something mentioned in the class that you want to explore
further (and I hope you will), I encourage you to write yourself a brief note and look it up after class.
As there are only 6 class sessions (in addition to the interview and capstone), missing any one of these for
reasons other than severe illness or serious emergency will significantly impact your grade. In the event
of severe illness or serious emergency, it is the student’s responsibility to communicate this situation to
me immediately upon his/her awareness that such an issue will or may result in missing class.
H. Integrity:
Although exams and research papers are not part of the evaluation of this course, submitting work that is
the result of your effort alone is still expected in this course unless collaboration is explicitly required for
the assignment. Please see pages 49-52 in The Bulletin (the Grove City College course catalogue) for a
detailed explanation of the College’s policies related to academic integrity and honesty in learning.
I. Expectations:
As Dr. Dupree explains in his ENTR 101 course syllabus, the 103 syllabus is like an “employment
contract”. You are responsible for knowing its contents and fulfilling its requirements and expectations.
Thus, it is your responsibility to remember assignments and due dates. Punctuality with regard to
submitting assignments and arriving to class is expected. You are to exude professionalism in your
writing and interactions (with classmates, guests, and me) during our class time, your interviews, and the
capstone. I expect that you will come to class prepared to meaningfully engage the classroom experience.
For this, I expect that you will prioritize getting sufficient sleep at night and taking care of yourself
physically so that you may be fully present both mentally and emotionally while in class. Though it may
seem rather obvious, this can often become an overlooked component (especially during one’s first
semester in college) as the college environment offers more choices regarding one’s time and more
enticing options with which to fill one’s time than ever before. Manage your time and energy diligently.
Being meaningfully engaged in a student organization or two enhances your overall learning in college;
however, remember that class is your first priority. Finally, always remember that it is you who is
primarily responsible for your own learning in academics and in life.
“If anyone were to give you [O Lord] an account of his real merits,
what else would that be but a list of your gifts?”
Augustine, Confessions, (Book IX, Chapter 13)
ENTR 103: The Entrepreneurial Experience