Located just on the edge of campus is the eHub, a branch of the Griggs Center for Entrepreneurship and Philanthropy as well as one of ACU’s newest facilities.
The College of Business Administration recently adopted and renovated the Moore House on the corner of EN 16th St. and Washington St. The building was repurposed to be a multifaceted tool for student business ventures and officially opened at the beginning of this semester.
However, the groundwork for this facility was established years before.
“We first started with the Springboard Ideas Challenge and then added two new programs,” said Hayden Jordan, assistant director for the Griggs Center.
The Ideas Challenge offers a venue for students and local entrepreneurs to enter mini-business plans that describe every aspect of their proposed business. The winners in each of the three divisions receive $7,500, and the concept deemed “Most Fundable” receives a total of $15,000.
Recently, they have added the Elevator Pitch, an opportunity each fall for students to pitch service, product and business plans in just two minutes.
Many of the competitors from each of these competitions have gone on to successfully create their business.
The eHub serves as the location for the most recent program, the Springboard Accelerator. The facility provides students the tools and services they need to successfully start or run a business. The eHub houses student office space, two conference rooms and a meeting room that allow students to have a professional space in which to conduct business.
Although many Division I schools such as Duke and Texas A&M provide similar facilities, ACU stands out among smaller schools.
“Not many schools our size offer these kinds of facilities,” said Jordan.
Jordan says approximately 30 students use the eHub consistently each week, and while many of these are COBA students, students in other majors also use the facilities.
Brittany Partridge, a senior political science major from Annandale, Minn., serves as the co-founder and campus coordinator for The Red Thread Movement. The organization utilizes eHub facilities as office space and a location to conduct meetings.
Partridge sees the eHub as both a vital instrument to her organization as well as a teaching tool for business practices.
“The experiences really teach us things that we couldn’t learn in a [business] class,” said Partridge.
Springboard Accelerator is currently accepting business applications for use of the eHub and its facilities.
