GIVING

freedom
Possibilities
Yvonne (Korloch ’97) English speaks with true passion,
and firsthand experience, when she talks about
the field of entrepreneurship. It’s a road well traveled that,
in many ways, has led her back to where it all began.
Yvonne (Korloch ’97) English
The arches featured in the background are one
of her favorite architectural highlights on campus,
the Hall of Arts and Letters.
E
“Entrepreneurship, to me, represents freedom and limitless possibilities.”
As Yvonne (Korloch ’97) English explains it, “I love the fact that I can use my
creativity, I love the fact that I know that I will never be bored when involved in
this field because you can do anything … every day is a new adventure. That’s
kind of the whole point of it.” She candidly describes another dimension that
makes the field a good fit, “I find that it’s easier to be an entrepreneur as a
woman than it is to be in a major corporation.”
Having spent the better part of her career in the financial sector of corporate
America before fully embracing her entrepreneurial spirit in 2011, she speaks
from first-hand experience. “What I found, too, is that women entrepreneurs are
a very supportive group.” She adds with enthusiasm, “I love that about women
and entrepreneurship.” But she admits the flipside of the coin is this, “It is harder
than a corporate job, but it is so much more rewarding.”
In the world of business, with reward comes responsibility. Or so Yvonne
seems to feel. “I do have an innate belief that God gives you certain talents
and that you have a responsibility. It’s not that it would be nice to give back. I
believe that I have a duty to give back based on the talents and the blessings I
have. I’m sure you’ve heard the old saying ‘do well by doing good.’ I believe that
entrepreneurship allows you to do well by doing good. You can actually hit two
birds with one stone. I believe that it’s not practical to think that everyone will
work in a nonprofit, but it could be practical someday that our corporations and
our businesses have that special component and think about the effect they
have on the environment, the country, people, etcetera and have kind of a
larger worldview than just that profit motive.”
Perhaps this mindset is what makes Yvonne’s recent reconnection with Grove
City College and The Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation both a perfect fit
and a natural progression of her career and interests. When she’s not attending
to her duties as the executive director of the eCenter@LindenPointe, a technology
business incubator located in Hermitage, Pa., she’s imparting her time and talent
to the College. As an adjunct professor of entrepreneurship and a member of the
Center for Entrepreneurship & Innovation Advisory Council, she says she feels a
certain calling to be involved with today’s promising students.
“I have had experience with several different types of businesses and I just
want to help others to learn from that experience. I have a great love for
Grove City College. It put together so many different pieces of my life;
I felt it was time to give back.”
When she talks about her interaction with students studying entrepreneurship,
her enthusiasm shines. “Grove City College students are a cut above. They’re
hard working, they’re earnest, they’re intelligent and they’re inquisitive.” And it’s
what she brings to the classroom that she hopes will make a difference, “With
my students, I really try to teach them to ask the right questions rather than
just trying to find the right answers.” She explains why, “Because, if you can
get students to think like that, then that’s when you really have the innovation
occur; that’s when entrepreneurship really takes root.”
“Grove City
College is the
cornerstone
of who I am
and the woman
I’ve become.”
Yvonne also speaks highly of the program
which is under the direction of Dr. Craig
Columbus, executive director of The Center for
Entrepreneurship & Innovation, chair of the
Department of Entrepreneurship and associate
professor of entrepreneurship. You can hear the
intensity in her voice when she says, “He’s really
a man of vision. He really sees where our
department needs to go and he’s taking steps to
make sure we get there. He’s a man of integrity
and great intelligence. He could be doing anything, anywhere and he chooses
to work with the program at Grove City College.”
She adds, “And if you look at Grove City College’s entrepreneurship program,
obviously it has one of the strongest in the country. We’re up to 19 courses,
which is a lot for a college, and over 50 percent of our professors actually have
high level, real world entrepreneurship experience.”
Considering what’s next, Yvonne says with delight, “I don’t know what
the future will hold, but I know right now that I am absolutely thrilled
to have this opportunity.”
12 2012 annual report & 2011–2012 honor roll of giving 2012 annual report & 2011–2012 honor roll of giving 13
10
MINUTES
TWO
WinnerS
In 2012, two Grove City
College teams earned
first and second place
overall at the prestigious
Tepper Venture Challenge.
The annual business
plan competition held at
Carnegie Mellon University
was judged by a board
of seasoned venture
capitalists and featured
many other top academic
institutions.
The competition allows
students to compete as
entrepreneurs pitching
business concepts to
potential investors. Teams
are provided 10 minutes
to sell their vision to judges
and 10 minutes to answer
questions.