The Woltemade Center for Economics, Business and Entrepreneurship at Ohio Wesleyan University has selected six students for its 2021 class of Latham Entrepreneurial Scholars.
The new Latham Scholars will take special classes, receive funds to support an internship, and develop their own entrepreneurial venture as they prepare themselves to become the next generation of business trailblazers.
Ohio Wesleyan’s 2021 Latham Entrepreneurial Scholars are:
- Ethan Brooker of Waverly, Ohio. Brooker plans to major in Finance Economics and minor in Accounting.
- Darren Lo of Columbus, Ohio. Lo plans to major in Data Analytics and Finance Economics.
- Millie Nguyen of Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam. Nguyen plans to major in Data Analytics.
- Shay Nguyen of Powell, Ohio. Nguyen plans to major in Philosophy and minor in Studio Fine Arts.
- Samavi Sultana of Baltimore, Maryland. Sultana plans to major in Computer Science and minor in International Studies and Mathematics.
- Santo Sumo of Monrovia, Montserrado, Liberia. Sumo plans to major in Computer Science and minor in Data Analytics and Economics.
In their first semester of the program, the Latham Entrepreneurial Scholars learn about the entrepreneurial mindset by attending a special seminar, interacting with an online learning module, and meeting with various multiple entrepreneurs. The online learning covers the basics of a business startup while focusing on their own business idea.
This learning is self-paced and allows students with limited or no business experience or coursework to learn the basics of a business startup in a manageable way. It also enables them to develop a business plan for their own idea or concept. Students even have the opportunity to complete a draft business plan by the end of the semester.
In their second semester of the program, the scholars participate in an entrepreneurial internship tailored to their skill and knowledge level. A majority of these internships are in partnership with the Delaware Entrepreneurial Center at Ohio Wesleyan University, a business accelerator located on the OWU campus and created in collaboration with both Delaware County and the City of Delaware.
The program culminates in a signature travel-learning trip to visit OWU alumni engaged in entrepreneurial ventures, enabling the scholars to learn and experience how university alumni are pursuing their entrepreneurial dreams using the educational foundation they received at Ohio Wesleyan.
The Latham Entrepreneurial Scholars Program was created with the support of OWU graduate Carol Latham, Class of 1961. She is the retired founder, president, and CEO of Thermagon, Inc., a custom manufacturer of high performance heat-transfer materials for electronic components. Under her leadership, Thermagon grew to sales of $18 million annually worldwide.
The program is open to all freshmen, sophomores, and juniors who have achieved a GPA of 2.0 or higher. Candidates interview with at least one Latham Entrepreneurial Scholars committee member and submit a letter of reference from an OWU faculty member.
Learn more about Ohio Wesleyan’s Woltemade Center at owu.edu/woltemade, more about its Delaware Entrepreneurial Center at owu.edu/delaware-entrepreneurial-center, and more about the OWU Department of Economics and Business at owu.edu/economics.
