I started teaching at the University of Michigan Center for Entrepreneurship in the Fall of 2012. At that time, there was no course offering that focused on using the power of entrepreneurship and technology to improve the quality of life in urban communities. I created the Urban Entrepreneurship Practicum in 2015 to fill that void. The course has evolved since that time – today it is known as “Innovation for Urban Impact” – but the basic idea is the same: to give students a working understanding of what it takes to create a sustainable, for-profit, scalable business that addresses an important urban community need. More than half the world’s people – 55% as of the year 2019 – live in an urban community. In the United States, the proportion of urban dwellers is approximately 80%. It is important, then, that we produce a cadre of innovators who are capable of creating or working in businesses that produce positive impact for such communities.
Innovation for Urban Impact is open to both undergraduate and graduate students. Students who complete the course receive practicum credit that applies toward U-M entrepreneurship minor degree requirements. Though the course focuses on entrepreneurship that benefits urban communities, the skills that students take away from the course apply to all kinds of entrepreneurial and general business pursuits.