The challenges facing America — around business creation, the economy, and beyond — are many and varied. There is no single solution, but to the extent a silver bullet exists, many point to education as a likely starting point.
For entrepreneurship, there is tremendous opportunity to reshape the American economy by investing in entrepreneurial education, job training, and education support systems.
America’s New Business Plan covers the topic extensively, from recommendations around training programs to K-16 curriculum reform. Recently, members of the Start Us Up coalition have been active on the issue, bringing further light to the relationship between education and entrepreneurship.
Teaching Entrepreneurship Will Be Key To The Post-COVID Recovery
Rising Tide CEO and Co-Founder Alfa Demmellash co-authored a column in Forbes discussing the importance of entrepreneurship education to strengthening communities of color through and beyond the pandemic. Writing about the link between minority-owned businesses and the “health and resilience of communities of color,” Demmellash and co-author Kristin Sharp write that “investing in the diverse entrepreneurs of the future will require the development of alternative education and training programs.”
Young People Deserve Entrepreneurial Opportunities
America’s New Business Plan was mentioned in a recent Mother Jones article sponsored by the Kauffman Foundation, specifically highlighting the potential for incubators and accelerators to equip entrepreneurs with the tools for success. The article also highlights initiatives in Kansas City and the Appalachian region to give young students an introduction to entrepreneurship and the skills needed to build success in later life.
Free entrepreneurs from student debt to supercharge the economy
And finally, America’s New Business Plan also discusses the chilling effect student loans may have on entrepreneurship. With the topic of student loan debt currently at the forefront of our national dialogue, the Center for American Entrepreneurship re-surfaced a 2019 op-ed with a plan to relieve would-be entrepreneurs from crippling debt. Though less direct than education or job-training, debt relief is yet another way of ensuring education enhances, rather than hinders, entrepreneurial opportunities.