The Genesis Entrepreneurship Centre is taking things to the next level and increasing opportunities for students to engage with local industry and community partners.
Now under the umbrella of Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the centre has expanded its ability to foster Work Integrated Learning for students.
Susan Taylor, Program Manager of Innovation, Entrepreneurship and Student Experience said it’s all about making connections between students and industry to help with jobs and startup businesses
The Centre will fall under the umbrella of the newly rebranded Research, Innovation and Entrepreneurship department (formally Applied Research and Development), and offer more possibilities for students in all programs.
“There’s a lot of people who didn’t utilize the Genesis Centre because they thought they had to be a business student," Taylor said. "This makes it clear that Genesis is available to the entire college, accessible to everyone. It just made more sense to combine the two together.”
It will continue to be business as usual for most of the workshops and other programs, but the Centre will focus on growing its compliment of student clubs, which will include workshops like 3-D printing, EV Club (electronic vehicles), and AGVs (automatic guided vehicle).
Taylor would like to someday create a "makerspace" with virtual reality goggles students can use, as well as sewing and embroidery machines for prototyping products.
This would elevate student engagement to the next level, she said.
“There are lots of cool things in technology out there which could stimulate interest and create new curriculums.”
The Genesis Entrepreneurship Centre and all its programs are open to students, alumni, faculty, and anyone in the Windsor-Essex community.
During the pandemic, the Centre has been running programs online, drawing people from all around the world through EventBrite, where tickets can be purchased.
Taylor said the main thing the Centre provides is resources.
“The goal is to have something on the calendar every day with a business and entrepreneurship focus.”
Basics of starting a small business, personal branding and networking, and social media for your business are some of the standardized workshops offered at the Centre.
The Centre also offers mentorship programs, where mentors work one-on-one with people on their business plan while providing resources and networking connections.
Part of what Taylor calls the Genesis Centre's “entrepreneurial ecosystem” includes local tech company WEtech Alliance, University of Windsor’s EPICentre, Small Business & Entrepreneurship Centre, which work together with the goal of getting people to start businesses in the community.
“Windsor has one of the lowest entrepreneurial rates in all of Canada and we’re working together to change that," Taylor said.
Interested individuals can register for any of the free programs by visiting stclaircollege.ca/genesis.
You can also sign up for monthly newsletters, view workshop calendars, or follow Genesis on EventBrite, Facebook and Instagram.
- Todd Shearon