FSU recently announced the largest gift in its history—$100 million— from Jan Moran and The Jim Moran Foundation to honor the late Jim Moran and create what will be the nation's largest interdisciplinary, degree-granting school of entrepreneurship.
The Jim Moran School of Entrepreneurship will stand alone, offering and greatly expanding the entrepreneurship courses currently taught in the College of Business and making them available to all FSU students.
FSU President John Thrasher called the gift "transformational" and said that entrepreneurial education in Florida and across the country will never be the same. The $100 million pledge includes a $20 million charitable bequest.
"In 1995, when my husband, Jim, and Dr. Melvin Stith (then dean of the FSU College of Business) established the Jim Moran Institute for Global Entrepreneurship, the term ‘entrepreneurship' was not commonly used," Jan Moran says. "Jim believed that the future belongs to those who prepare for it. With this gift, we forever secure Jim's legacy and his passion for supporting entrepreneurism so that current and future generations will have the knowledge and skills they need to be successful.
"I'm excited about the positive impact that the Jim Moran School of Entrepreneurship will have on the student entrepreneurs as they embark on their lifelong entrepreneurial journey, creating and growing successful businesses and creating jobs throughout Florida and beyond."
The Jim Moran School of Entrepreneurship will reside under Provost Sally McRorie and operate much like a college. The school's director and other staff members will be housed in a building in downtown Tallahassee, very close to the state Capitol, local businesses and statewide associations. The Jim Moran Institute also will relocate to the same building. The prime location will ensure that the Jim Moran name is front-and-center with respect to entrepreneurship around the state. The school is expected to become the go-to resource for government leaders, trade associations, entrepreneurs, nonprofits and small businesses on a national level.
The undergraduate entrepreneurship programs will award both the Bachelor of Science degree and Bachelor of Arts degree in Entrepreneurship, along with a redesigned, interdisciplinary minor. The school will be organized across five major focal areas that will offer academic majors under the B.S. and B.A. degrees in the following:
The official launch date of the school is scheduled for Aug. 8, 2018—which would have been the 100th birthday of Jim Moran.
"We are ready to build on the legacy of Jim Moran to create a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem throughout the state of Florida, the region and the nation," President Thrasher says.
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