Marquette's Kohler Center for Entrepreneurship Announces Business Plan Competition Winning plans will receive substantial cash awards Released: Nov. 4, 2005 The Kohler Center for Entrepreneurship at Marquette University is now accepting submissions for its fourth annual Business Plan Competition. Marquette University undergraduates, graduate students, alumni, faculty and staff, as well as Initiative for a Competitive Milwaukee businesses are invited to enter. A Business Plan Competition information session will be held on Tuesday, November 8, 2005 in David A. Straz, Jr. Hall, room 265, at 8:00 p.m. This session will provide in-depth information about the process for anyone interested in participating. The on-line registration deadline is November 21. Following the deadline, the two-page submissions will be reviewed by Marquette faculty including Professors Tim Keane, Alex Stewart and Gregory Konz, S.J. The entrants whose submissions are thought to hold the most potential will be paired with a metro-Milwaukee area mentor to develop a more in-depth plan. The mentor will be a practicing entrepreneur from the Golden Angels Network or a Marquette alumnus. The fully developed plans will be reviewed by a panel from the Golden Angels Network that will announce a list of finalists to participate in oral presentations. The winners receiving cash awards will be announced at Marquette on April 17, 2006. The competition provides a learning environment in which nascent entrepreneurs develop their business ideas and receive feedback from faculty and experienced entrepreneurs. Since the competition began in 2003, over $50,000 has been awarded to business plan competition participants. Awards have gone to Milwaukee-based endeavors including a biotech company, spa, specialty grocery store and marketing firm. Participants in the last three competitions found the process to be invaluable, not only for developing their ideas into focused business plans, but also for the practical experience of presenting their plans to potential investors. The purpose of the Kohler Center for Entrepreneurship is to create a leading edge learning environment based on focused coursework, and hands-on experiences that leverage an outstanding network of successful entrepreneurs. Its aim is the advancement of entrepreneurship and the responsible creation of wealth by students, alumni and entrepreneurs with extremely high potential or in distressed communities. The Kohler Center for Entrepreneurship was named one of the top 25 regional entrepreneurship programs by Entrepreneur. Over 500 universities are included in the survey. Office of Marketing and Communication Contacts Anne Broeker Senior Media Relations Specialist Phone: (414) 288-0286 Send e-mail