Fordham's Janssen on Educating Entrepreneurs

Christine Janssen at a Fordham Foundry event.

Entrepreneurship. These days, it seems everyone – particularly young people – are clamoring for a shot at founding the next great startup, and being their own boss.

But what’s the best way to achieve entrepreneur status?

Recently, an article in the Wall Street Journal touched on the importance of networking and support systems while downplaying the importance of choice of school and grades in college.

This piqued the interest of Christine Janssen, Ph.D., director of the Entrepreneurial Program at the Gabelli School of Business and co-director of both Fordham's Center for Entrepreneurship and the Fordham Foundry, a small-business incubator in the Bronx launched in 2012 in partnership with New York City government agencies. 

So, in a guest OpEd with VC-List, a blog for the venture capital industry, Janssen dishes out her own advice:

“Where you go to school is important. Aspiring entrepreneurs should choose a school that possesses more than a longstanding reputation and brand recognition. What can really differentiate one’s experience and outcome are resources, mentors, and access to non-traditional learning experiences that the school can offer,” Janssen wrote in her piece, “How Should College Play a Role in Educating Future Entrepreneurs?”

Janssen also doled out advice for how best to educate for budding and aspiring entrepreneurs:

• Entrepreneurs evolve from any given major, but I would also propose that students should be able to customize their educational experience. While there are certain subjects that all aspiring entrepreneurs should master (accounting, finance, communications, management and just about anything related to technology), college can no longer be a one-size-fits-all proposition.
• Do not ignore grades. A student’s grades don’t necessarily reflect what they have learned or if what was learned is relevant, but a healthy transcript still is a reflection of a student’s effort and commitment. I would certainly select someone with a 4.0 grade point average over a 2.8 GPA any day to join my startup.
• Network. In every core class in my entrepreneurship program, students are REQUIRED to attend professional networking events – and they may not be university-sponsored events or events on campus. That’s too easy. My job is to expose them to the real world and begin building a toolbox of skills and resources so when they complete my program they will have dozens of relationships (and potential mentors) established to help them build out their careers – whether launching a new venture, working at a startup, or being the innovation catalyst at a larger organization. Pushing students out of their comfort zones is a one small step for students, one giant leap for new business creation. 

Read the rest of her piece at VC-List, and watch this video about a couple of young students--two brothers--who created and ran a boot camp for young teen entrepreneurs, with help from the Fordham Foundry.

--Gina Vergel

Media Spotlight: Patrick Hornbeck Weighs in on Vatican Strengthening its Financial Oversight

It’s not every day that publications focusing on corporate compliance and governance feature pieces about Pope Francis. But on May 21st, the Wall Street Journal’s “Risk and Compliance Journal” did just that, and featured a Fordham faculty member’s quote with it.

Journal columnist Gregory Millman says Pope Francis “appears to be taking a leaf from the corporate compliance playbook with major reforms of the Vatican’s governance and finances, aimed at guarding the Holy See’s reputation and making its dealings more transparent.”

The Vatican’s anti-money-laundering unit, the Financial Information Authority, on May 20 released its first annual report, and Millman reports that compliance changes at the Vatican go much further, and include establishing three new bodies with jurisdiction over finance and administration.

The essentials of the new governance structure were sketched out by Pope Francis in a February document called a Motu Proprio.

The objective is to bring 21st-century governance to an ancient organization whose traditional administration was inadequate to prevent the well-publicized scandals of recent years, Millman says:

“The first of the new Vatican organizations is a Council on the Economy, whose membership includes eight cardinals and seven lay experts. The second new unit, a Secretariat for the Economy, is equal in rank to the Vatican Secretariat of State. It reports directly to the Pope, and has jurisdiction over operational matters including controls, policies and procedures, purchasing and human resources. The third element of the new governance structure is an independent auditor general.”

Millman also says “Pope Francis’s governance changes also strike a blow against one of his bête noires: clericalism, or excessive deference to the clergy even in areas where clerical status is irrelevant.” And this is where a Fordham theology expert weighs in:

Patrick Hornbeck, professor and chair of the theology department at Fordham University in New York, said that the new structure’s provision for sharing of power between clergy and laity is “a significant and a distinctive feature of the emerging style of Francis’s papacy,” explaining, “I think that Pope Francis is recognizing that, with respect to issues like the economy, lay experts who deal in matters of finance and governance and compliance for a living might be better positioned to advise him on these issues than members of the clergy might.”

Read the whole piece here (subscription required).

-Gina Vergel

Fordham Faculty Newsclip of the Week

Photo by Bruce Gilbert

As we saw during the Papal transition earlier this year, Fordham faculty are often interviewed in the media. As such, we've decided to share key stories our faculty are quoted in on a weekly basis.

This week's news clip involves a hot Democratic mayoral primary race in New York City. Following the Democratic debate on Sept. 4, Costas Panagopoulos, associate professor of political science and Director of Fordham's Center for Electoral Politics and Democracy, weighed in on how it went in the Wall Street Journal:

"There were no knockout punches. Overall, my impression was the dynamics of the race were not shaken up in any meaningful way ... " Panagopoulos said.

Read the rest of his comments, and the entire article, here.

Media Update: Spotlight on Fordham

Yesterday saw yet another wave of media visit Fordham on campus and off, with Fordham professors weighing in on TV, radio, print, and on the web. CBS's Lou Young visited the campus to interview Joseph Lienhard, S.J., professor of theology. Recording below:


After a full day of analysis that saw his feedback appear in the Daily News to The Wall Street Journal, Terrence Tilley, Ph.D., the Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J., Chair in Catholic Theology and chair of the department, spent the wee hours chatting with the hosts of the Dallas-based Red Eye Radio. Recording below:



Meanwhile, back in New York City, Maureen Tilley, Ph.D., professor of theology, provided more papal feedback on Fox news. To link to the video click here.



Michael Lee, Ph.D., associate professor of theology, talked to the Huffington Post. "You can tell that this is man who is speaking from experience, not in a lecture," he told the site. "His sermons have talked about proximity to the poor. Benedict continued a strong line in Catholic social teaching in general, but I don't think he had that proximity. Francis does."

Father McShane, Fordham Community, Hail First Jesuit Pope

Joseph M. McShane, S.J., president of Fordham, members of the University's Jesuit community, and Fordham theology faculty have been contributing to the global conversation marking the historic day in the history of the Catholic Church--the naming of the first Jesuit pope, Pope Francis I.

Father McShane appeared on Charlie Rose just hours after the naming of the new pope, where guest host Frank Bruni asked him what advice he'd give the new pontiff.

"You know Holy Week is almost upon us," he said. "On Holy Thursday, do not wash the feet of seminarians or priests, Bring in to St. Peters the poor the forgotten, the lonely, the outcast, the people that the world thinks little of and would turn away from, and on that day, wash their feet."

Bloomberg carried a short clip of the interview (below), but for the full roundtable discussion click here.


After giving live analysis for The Wall Street Journal's website, Terrence Tilley, Ph.D., Avery Cardinal Dulles, S.J., Chair in Catholic Theology and chair of the department, noted that the Conclave had elevated the global recognition of New York's own Archbishop, Cardinal Timothy Dolan. The paper later quoted Tilley as saying the exposure "gives [Dolan] a kind of boost that is quite remarkable...He becomes more of an influential person, a kingmaker in clerical and Vatican circles." That quote was later picked up by NY1's Pat Kiernan for the station's "In the Papers" segment.

In a column published by Fox News Latino, J. Patrick Hornbeck III, Ph.D., assistant professor of theology, noted the new pope's break from tradition from the first greeting of the masses in Rome: "Eschewing the tradition of his recent predecessors, the new pope chose not to wear the elaborate papal mozzetta, or short velvet cape, when he appeared on the balcony of St. Peter’s Basilica. Instead, Francis I presented himself to the world in a simple white cassock, a sartorial choice that will no doubt have left some traditionalists aghast."

Maureen Tilley, Ph.D., professor of theology, discussed the subtext of Pope Francis' Jesuit vow of poverty. "He's not just there for show," she told PIX 11. 

Charles Camosy, Ph.D., assistant professor of Theology, appeared on AOL.on News
"Taking the name 'Francis' I think is a major signal he is sending to everyone about who he is going to be, and on what side he is going to be--he is going to be on the side of the poor . . . leading a simple life."