Entrepreneurship

This pathway is designed to prepare students who want to start, own, and operate their own business. The purpose of the Entrepreneurship program of studies is to help young innovators at the secondary level begin to develop and equip themselves with the practical skills and knowledge needed to successfully launch and maintain small businesses as entrepreneurs.

National Career Cluster Alignment

The Entrepreneurship Pathway is a part of the Marketing, Distribution, and Logistics career cluster. The Marketing Cluster involves planning, managing, and performing marketing and sales activities to reach an organization’s objectives.

Pathway Courses

Level 1 Course: Introduction to Entrepreneurship

In this course, students will develop strong foundational knowledge in key business and entrepreneurial principles, including types of business ownership management functions and styles, human resources, business operations, marketing, finance and budgeting, employment law, and ethics. Students will also develop skills in critical thinking, communication, and professionalism by exploring key aspects of leadership, the entrepreneurial mindset, diversity, teamwork, and conflict resolution. Upon completion of this course, students will be proficient in the foundations of entrepreneurship and small business ownership, business concepts and operations, finance and budgeting, marketing principles, leadership and management functions, and professional communications.

Aligned Industry Credential: Microsoft Office Specialist - Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook. Pass an exam in a specific Office program (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, or Outlook) to earn a Microsoft Office Specialist certification. Being certified as a Microsoft Office Specialist demonstrates a student has the skills needed to get the most out of Office.

Level 2 Course: Marketing and Management I: Principles

Marketing and Management I: Principles focuses on the study of marketing concepts and their practical applications. Students will examine the risks and challenges that marketers face to establish a competitive edge in the sale of products and services. Topics covered include foundational marketing functions such as promotion, distribution, and selling, as well as coverage of economics fundamentals, international marketing, and career development. Upon completion of this course, proficient students will understand the economic principles, the marketing mix, and product development and selling strategies.

Aligned Industry Credential: Southwest Airlines Professional Communications Certification. The Southwest Airlines Professional Communication Certification focuses on how to communicate effectively in the workplace by addressing topics, including time management, written and verbal communication, listening skills, and effectively managing diversity in the workplace.

Level 3 Course: Entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship is an applied knowledge course that begins with the discovery process of generating new business ideas. Students research local, national, and international social and economic trends and analyze the feasibility of their own proposed businesses, both from a market demand and revenue-producing standpoint. Based on their entrepreneurial endeavors, students will prepare, write, and revise a business plan. In preparation for the business plan, students will conduct market research, study ownership structures, evaluate risks, examine startup costs, determine essential vendors, and identify sources of capital and financing options. Students will also draft, refine, and rehearse entrepreneurship pitches developed from their business plans to present during course intervals and to give final presentations at the conclusion of the course. Upon conclusion of this course, proficient students will be able to articulate, and defend, elements of a full business plan for a new business.

Aligned Industry Credential: Southwest Airlines Professional Communications Certification. The Southwest Airlines Professional Communication Certification focuses on how to communicate effectively in the workplace by addressing topics, including time management, written and verbal communication, listening skills, and effectively managing diversity in the workplace.

Dual Credit and/or Dual Enrollment Opportunity in this Pathway

Credit Type: Dual Credit

Institution: NSCC - Nashville State Community College

Dual Credit- Credit by assessment. Students are enrolled in a high school course that is identified as a match with a post-secondary course. Students complete a college assessment at the end of the course to prove mastery of content. If the student passes the test, the student can use the college credit at that institution or request a transcript to use at a different institution.

Affiliated Career and Technical Student Organization: DECA

DECA prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in marketing, finance, hospitality and management in high schools and colleges around the globe.

Maplewood High School

Academy of Entrepreneurship & Innovation