Connecting College Learners with Rural Entrepreneurship Opportunities: The Rural Entrepreneurship Teaching Unit.

The Rural Entrepreneurship Teaching Unit (RETU) is designed to acquaint university retailing and hospitality majors with rural entrepreneurship opportunities. The unit is an outcome of a federal grant focused on the contribution of the local retail sector to rural community resilience. The RETU integrates knowledge regarding rural development, market analysis, entrepreneurship, and marketing in an interactive outreach project. The RETU, which includes three modules, focuses on introducing Millennial learners to rural issues. It pairs student teams with rural community entrepreneurs and business leaders to apply business and community resiliency concepts to local business sector issues. Learning teams then use results of a focused research activity to develop competitive strategies to enhance the local business sector in the community. The unit was piloted at two Midwestern universities during the spring 2011 semester. Learners (n=40) strongly agreed that participation increased understanding of issues facing rural entrepreneurs and appreciation for positive and negative aspects of owning a small business in a rural community. Community participants (n=10) expressed satisfaction with newfound knowledge about Millennials’ lifestyle and shopping preferences, ideas from students’ business enhancement projects, and the opportunity to contribute to learners’ educational goals.