A New Era for Experiential Business Education as the Charles D. Close School of Entrepreneurship Integrates with LeBow
Any business founder or owner can tell you: starting a new venture requires fortitude. Often, an early-stage founder will find themselves filling all kinds of key business functions — accounting, marketing, finance and more — as a startup finds its footing. What makes it all possible? A bold vision and the dedication to see it through.
That spirit of business and entrepreneurship going hand-in-hand is at the heart of the newest chapter in the story of business education at Drexel. As of Sept. 1, the Charles D. Close School of Entrepreneurship is integrated within the Bennett S. LeBow College of Business, and its students, professional staff and faculty are now part of the LeBow community.
This integration serves a signal achievement of Drexel University’s ongoing Academic Transformation initiative, with leaders from Close and LeBow finding synergies and alignment within existing resources and structures to make each institution stronger.
“I’m proud to welcome the Close School, Dean Donna DeCarolis and all of its students, alumni, faculty and professional staff to the LeBow community,” says Vibhas Madan, PhD, LeBow Dean and R. John Chapel Jr. Dean’s Chair.
“As a result of this integration, both Close and LeBow will be stronger, more resilient and better positioned to create impact in the world and opportunities for our students.”
The Close School was first established in 2012 through gifts from the Charles and Barbara Close Foundation and launched as an independent school of entrepreneurship in 2013. Since its founding, its leaders have created a first-of-its-kind curriculum and built a talented faculty of entrepreneurs, founders, creators and thought-leaders. Through academic coursework, as well as through developing the Entrepreneurship Co-op and incubating student-led startups at the Laurence A. Baiada Institute for Entrepreneurship, Close has delivered outstanding experiential and entrepreneurial education to a dynamic and well-rounded student body.
That mission continues, with Close maintaining its identity as a school and its physical space in the Pearlstein Business Learning Center on Drexel’s University City campus.
“This integration is about creating a powerful synergy. We aren’t just joining forces; we’re giving every Drexel student the chance to embrace an entrepreneurial mindset,” says Donna DeCarolis, Founding Dean of the Close School and Silverman Family Professor of Entrepreneurial Leadership. “By blending the Close School’s ‘learn by doing’ approach with LeBow’s comprehensive business education, we’re preparing Drexel students not just for a job, but to create the future.”
Students entering LeBow this fall in the BA in Entrepreneurship and Innovation and the MS in Entrepreneurship and Innovation programs will have access to all of LeBow’s academic and support services, including learning communities, the Center for Career Readiness and the John and Jinnie Chapel Learning & Tutoring Center, as well as programming and events offered through the Office of Engagement and Alumni Relations, the Dornsife Office for Experiential Learning and the Center for Applied AI and Business Analytics.
LeBow students interested in pursuing a minor in entrepreneurship or a dual major including entrepreneurship and innovation should contact their academic advisor.
