In my second year as a teacher, I turned my h.s. economics class into an entrepreneurship class. Unfortunately, at that time, I did not make the connection between growing entrepreneurs and growing stronger rural communities. Instead of teaching them to recognize opportunities in rural communities, I encouraged them to find opportunities in urban settings. In other words, my efforts didn’t achieve the goals you outline above.

With this in mind, I would encourage any rural school developing an entrepreneurship program to make sure that efforts connects students to their communities.

Currently, I write for our organization’s blog — http://www.reimaginerural.com. Because we believe there is a strong connection between strong schools and strong communities, I write occasional posts on education. If you can share more specifics about the programs you mention above, I would love to learn more. Thanks.

I saw this really good post today….

But I think the reason we may not have led the world at any time in test scores but have in creativity and innovation is because in this country we have allowed, emphasized, and stood for freedom. We are free to think, say, and act in ways that are contrary to conventional wisdom (within the legal boundaries). And those “rebels” are not silenced. They may not get their way, but at the end of they day those who have different ideas are mostly respected and allowed to be different. That, in my opinion, is why our country is and will continue to lead the world even if it isn’t in standardized test scores.