Strategic Planning for Entrepreneurship Program Growth

With a Focus on Student Impact

Author

Stephen Carter
December 16, 2024

Entrepreneurship education programs in K-12 schools operate a little differently than most traditional academic programs. Actually, scratch that–they break/change/modify/replace pretty much any of the existing rules and require their own strategic planning in order to harness all the potential healthy growth.

That’s why this time of year, as we head into January planning for next school year, it is imperative to clearly map out the next three years of growth for your entrepreneurship program (which can include launching one if you don’t have one on your campus yet). The reason the three-year growth planning is so essential is because it takes into account the fact that a healthy entrepreneurship program will, in fact, continue to grow.

Most school programs will grow until they reach the necessary size and then maintain that level for as long as necessary. Not healthy entrepreneurship programs. Healthy entrepreneurship programs are required to grow–with a firm basis in a growth mindset, the very idea of “maintaining” doesn’t exist.

And this requires proper planning. The two most important parts of this plan involve the teacher training and the student certificate. And this is where, at Seed Tree Group, we are actively working with schools around the nation to map out how this teacher certification program will in turn lead to a student certificate track which will allow for a multi-year experience in the program for students who want to fully develop their entrepreneurial mindset.

Schools that implement this plan experience higher teacher satisfaction (who wouldn’t want to grow in their own entrepreneurial mindset while teaching engaged students?) as well as larger numbers of students entering the program and continuing in the program. Many of these schools have had to implement an application process because of the large student interest.

In the end, the strength of the program will be directly connected to the strength of the planning, and when we plan for teacher training alongside a student certificate, it engages all key stakeholders (including the donor community).

The real breakthrough in planning comes when we start to plan for full school impact in all grade levels and subject areas–when we truly embrace a culture of growth mindset, grit, redefining failure, and opportunity seeking, we encounter true educational transformation. 

Standing out as a Christian school while staying true to your values is more challenging than ever. At Seed Tree Group, we help schools implement a proven entrepreneurship program that empowers students to take ownership of their education, equipping them with life-ready skills and creating a distinguished school with engaged students, inspired parents, and energized donors.

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Imagine your culture infused with growth mindset, grit, redefining failure, and opportunity seeking. Imagine your team acting and thinking like entrepreneurs.

Stephen Carter