#10 Academia and Education: Regent Entrepreneurship Director John Mulford
Training and inspiring the next generation of business as mission entrepreneurs is a vital part of the success of the movement. Because it as the forefront of combining business, mission and education the Regent Center for Entrepreneurship and its leadership is a business as mission catalyst to watch in 2007.The center for entrepreneurship is led by Director, John Mulford. As Director, his enduring passion for economic development for the disadvantaged coincides with the awakening of business people to opportunities for business as mission. John came to Regent University in 1982 as a founding faculty member in the School of Business. In 1990, he was named dean and served in this position through the summer of 2004.
At Regent, Mulford has taught economics, statistics, and management science, but his passion has been developing a comprehensive Christian worldview of business and equipping those called to business with the tools to glorify God in their work. He has a particular interest in seeing disadvantaged groups advance through entrepreneurial activity.
The Living Stones Foundation Charitable Trust, founded by Ken and Roberta Eldred awarded the initial grant of $1 million over a five-year period towards the creation of the center in the early months of 2006. The grant was given towards the launch and the expansion of the center.In the past year that center has worked to research and define best practices of business as mission and communicating that message to the world. In the first year the center has begun working on projects in Zambia, Kenya, Rwanda, Nepal and Ukraine. In addition, the center has launched an interactive website of business as mission information. Here are two things that stand out most about the website:
1. Directory of Organizations Involved in Business as Mission: This comprehensive directory of groups can be a helpful piece of information for people trying to get involved in business as mission.
2. Networking Donors and Mentors: This piece of the website has been recently launched. How much it will take off is yet to be seen, but one of the big initiatives is the launch of their "Linked In" network. They have launched a service of networking donors with business as mission pioneers as well as a mentoring service.
