The concept of what it means to be an Entrepreneur in College and how this important concept is helping us reach "That Michigan."

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Tim Nelson

Tim Nelson was named President of Northwestern Michigan College on February 26, 2001. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in Mathematics from Grand Valley State University and a Master of Science degree in Business Administration from Michigan Technological University.

Nelson came to NMC as Executive Director of Administrative Services in April 2000, from his position of Vice President for Finance and Administration at Olivet College. While at Olivet he also served as Vice President for Enrollment and Strategic Management and Chair of the Department of Business Administration and Economics.

 

Prior to his work at Olivet, Nelson held an executive position at Great Lakes Capital Management Corporation in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and was president and founder of Access Technologies Corporation of Houghton, Michigan.  He also taught in the School of Business and Engineering Administration at Michigan Technological University in Houghton.

 

Tom Stewart

Thomas A. Stewart founded Common Wealth Enterprises in April 2009 as an outlet to advocate for social enterprise and community capitalism. He is committed to tackling today’s social issues by redefining how organizations and individuals see their role in driving social change.

Prior to launching Common Wealth Enterprises, Thomas founded Stewart Consulting, a business development-consulting firm in Lansing, MI. As a partner at Stewart Consulting, Thomas provided strategic planning, project management, and communications strategy to a variety of clients, such as Neogen Corporation – a global manufacturer of food and animal safety products – and Michigan State University.
Thomas is looking forward to helping create a more sustainable world through Common Wealth Enterprises and its social enterprise initiatives. He holds a B.A. in Psychology from Michigan State University and is finishing his M.B.A. from the University of Phoenix.

Joel Rash

Joel Rash started his first business on a dare when he was just eighteen years old. In a series of not-always-logical steps, concert promotion led to New York City and back, owning mixed-use commercial buildings, economic development from the non-profit side of things, the Appalachian Trail, entrepreneurship in a university setting, and now back to concert promotion. As the founder of Flint Local 432, one of the nation’s longest-running all ages youth arts spaces, Joel has become familiar with the creative economy, the revitalization of city centers, and all sorts of building codes. Reborn as a non-profit in 2011, the Local hopes to create a template for doing the impossible – operating a vibrant and diverse arts venue without relying entirely on foundation support and/or alcohol sales.

This year Joel also returned to youth entrepreneurship as a staff member of the YES Flint Network. YES stands for Youth, Entrepreneurship, Sustainability, and the network’s goal is to empower people to pursue their entrepreneurial dreams by connecting them with educational institutions, non-profits, service providers, mentors and forward-thinking companies. YES Flint is the first U.S. affiliate of an international organization active in 55 countries and will become a model for other similar local and regional organizations.