ELI Fall 2008

Community meeting gives students an entrepreneurial peek into Durham
Students stepped out of the classroom and into the community September 18 to meet community leaders and discuss tackling Durham’s challenges with an entrepreneurial approach as part of Professor Christopher Gergen’s Social Enterprise Development course. Read More.

ELI Spring 2008

Putting Student Entrepreneurship to Work for the Community
With more students drawn in by the appeal of entrepreneurship, the Hart Leadership Program wants to match their enthusiasm. The HLP recently unveiled its expanded Entrepreneurial Leadership Initiative (ELI) to be implemented by Spring 2009. Read More.

ELI Fall 2007

ELI Students Pitch Ideas for New Community, Business Projects
As part of Duke’s inaugural Entrepreneurship Week, six groups of undergraduate entrepreneurs – including 2 groups from ELI – made presentations before a large audience and a panel of venture capitalists and other professional entrepreneurs. Rosie’s Kitchen, a cooperative kitchen venture for low-income single mothers from the Weaver Street neighborhood of Durham developed and presented by Priyanka Chaurasia, Vatsala Kabra, Mariam Nassiri, and Melanie Wright, took home a People’s Choice Award. Read More.

Christopher Gergen Joins HLP Faculty
Christopher Gergen has joined the HLP faculty as the new ELI director, nearly twenty years after graduating from Duke as an HLP student himself. After leaving Duke and becoming a successful entrepreneur, founding companies, and writing a book, he returned in Fall 2007 to pass on his knowledge and experience by teaching the Enterprising Leadership course. After coming full circle through the HLP and embracing the spirit of ELI, Gergen has plans for where he would like to see the program go under his leadership. Read More.

HLP class forges partnership with Durham leaders
Professor Chris Gergen's PPS 144: Enterprising Leadership class met with Durham leaders last month to devise entrepreneurial plans to help the community. Leaders held a discussion about issues of high school dropouts, mental health, and Latino affairs that fueled a mutual excitement among the leaders and students to take the next step in developing solutions. Students will spend the rest of the semester devising project proposals addressing a specific community issue. Read more.