Faculty: Matthew Fox, Charis Asante-Agyei 

Content: Examines the fundamentals of entrepreneurial thinking and activity through the lens of the liberal arts. Students will be introduced to the entrepreneurial skills needed to design and operate any venture, including understanding complex systems, recognizing opportunities, assessing customer need, identifying a viable business or funding model and market, and developing effective marketing strategies. Student performance will be evaluated through class participation and preparation, a number of short assignments, one exam, and a final term project and presentation.
Prerequisites: None
Usually offered: Annually, fall and spring semester
Semester credits: 4

 ELI 102 Idea Lab: Introduction to Design Thinking

Faculty: Amy Dvorak 

Content: Introduction to current trends in efforts to address the environmental, social, and economic challenges of the 21st century. How for-profit and nonprofit entities, and innovative hybrids of the two, have begun to address modern problems and needs by supplying goods and services in new ways; the role of government in promoting sustainability through both traditional regulation and more innovative approaches; how market-dependent mechanisms such as product labels, private and public certification schemes, and investment and divestment strategies affect consumer behavior and public policy. A number of guest speakers will participate in classes over the course of the semester.
Prerequisites: Sophomore standing required
Usually offered: Annually, fall semester
Semester credits: 4

Content: Structured internship program in sustainability, including both a classroom and workplace component. Begins with a two-week introduction to issues in renewable energy, followed by a full-time internship placement. Students will continue to attend a once-weekly class on skill development in the workplace and the relationship between theory and practice.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Junior standing required
Usually offered: Annually, summer only
Semester credits: 4

ELI 270 - Introduction to Nonprofit Management

Faculty: Rebecca Lingafelter or David “Rocky” Johnson  

Introduction to Nonprofit Management gives students a broad overview of the nonprofit sector and gives them an opportunity to apply that knowledge to the practice of creating the mission statement, working through the 501(c)3 application process, and designing a strategic plan informed by the mission toward operational growth. Analysis of benefits of potential organizational structures: staff, board cultivation, volunteers, committees, and memberships. Consideration of scope and planning of services and events to align with the mission. Financial management including budgeting, earned revenue, fundraising, and development strategy. Public relations work to promote the mission and brand of the organization, including press releases. The course will include special guests who will mentor the students in group projects, as they incubate their own nonprofit ideas (mission statements, first-year budget, organizational structure, activities). Students will visit local nonprofits to learn about their missions and scope of work.

Prerequisites: None.
Usually offered: Annually spring semester 
Semester credits: 4

 ELI-275 Value Creation and Analysis

Faculty: Cliff Bekar   

Foundational course providing an understanding of essential financial principles and practices. Overview of financial management, markets, and instruments. Key concepts include the time value of money, financial statement analysis, risk and return, basic financial planning. Combines financial theory with practical applications using case studies, projects, and hands-on coding exercises. Students will learn methods of data manipulation and analysis, visualization, financial modeling, and building customized decision support tools. No prior business, finance, or programming background is required. Suitable for anyone interested in gaining a basic understanding of financial principles.

Usually offered: Annually, spring semester
Semester credits: 4

 ELI 280 Communicating a Vision: Messaging for Impact

Faculty: Jaleesa Johnson 

Content: Introduction and examination of issues surrounding the role of a contemporary art curator. The curator’s unique function in various venues—nonprofit, museum, gallery, academic institution—will be thoroughly explored to understand the ways in which space, resources, audience, and material impact their work. Students will meet with local curators and arts professionals, practice critical viewing and writing about art, study different exhibition-making strategies, and obtain hands-on experience in organizing an exhibition. Students must allow for travel time for field trips to different art venues in Portland, which take place throughout the semester during regular class time.
Prerequisites: None.
Restrictions: Sophomore standing required
Usually offered: Annually, fall semester
Semester credits: 4

Faculty Supervisor: Brian Detweiler-Bedell

Content: Organized practicum in a select industry, with strong academic, experiential, and preprofessional components. Past topics include screenwriting and brewing, with future anticipated topics to include real estate, the food industry, technology transfer, and investment management.
Prerequisites: ELI 101, 102, or 103.
Restrictions: Sophomore standing required.
Usually offered: Annually, fall and spring semester. 
Semester credits: 4.

 ELI-345 Practicum: Grant Writing (fall class) 

Faculty: David “Rocky” Johnson

Content: Grant Proposal Writing will be examined through class lectures and discussion,
reading materials, guest presentations, and student grant proposal presentations. The
instructor has over 30 years of experience at grant writing and managing nonprofit
organizations. The class will focus on how to identify/select funding sources and write
grant proposals with maximum appeal. The class will also cover how grant writing and
funding is part of nonprofit corporate funding plans and sustainable revenue generation.
Students will identify a grant proposal sponsor and project, research and select grant
funding source(s), and write a grant proposal for submission to a funding source.
Students will also provide feedback on draft grant proposals from other students in the
class.

• Gain a knowledge of grant funding sources, procedures, and how grant funding is a part of successful nonprofit financial management.
• Develop, write, and submit a fundable grant proposal.
• Learn about the grant universe and its role in addressing social welfare and justice.

Prerequisites: ELI 101, 102 or 103
Restrictions: Sophomore standing required
Semester credits: 4
Instructor: The instructor has over 30 years of experience at grant writing and managing nonprofit organizations.This course requires instructor permission to register. Please email Chrys Hutchings to request permission.

 ELI 345  Music Industry Practicum

Faculty: Rebecca Jordan Smith

Content: This course provides an opportunity to explore firsthand how the music industry works. While studying historical and contemporary practices, students will create original projects and examine and participate in the full potential life cycle of a record release in small collaborative groups. Students will be faced with decisions to make and actions to take at each stage of their project’s life cycle, to help them better understand the practical application of business concepts presented in readings, videos and lectures. We will consider the short- and long-term impacts of decision making from the perspective of both the artist and the business team representing the artist’s interests (manager, record label, music publisher, etc.). Via weekly assignments, students will present a course of action to the entire group to invite feedback and discussion. We will also be visited by at least two music industry guests and experience an in-person or virtual tour of a local recording studio.

About the instructor: Rebecca Jordan Smith began her career in the music industry as a recording artist signed to Elektra Records and Clive Davis’ J Records. She toured nationally with Matchbox 20, Third Eye Blind and Lilith Fair. Learn more about the instructor here.

Prerequisites: ELI 101, 102 or 103
Restrictions: Sophomore standing required
Semester credits: 4
This course requires instructor permission to register. Please email Rebecca Jordan Smith to request permission

 ELI 345 Marketing Practicum 

Faculty: Nedra Rezinas  

Content: Entrepreneurs are not risk takers as much as they are decision makers who use customer data well. Marketing is one of the most important, dynamic and proactive parts of any organization and the key interface with the most valuable asset a company has - Its customer. Marketers are fixated with understanding consumer’s needs, desires, wants, trade-offs and even anticipating what they don’t know they want yet, all with the aim of transforming this insight into creating competitive products or services that out-maneuver the competition.

Through this course, students will develop a broad understanding of the importance and complexity of major issues and challenges in today’s marketing world, analyse the marketing strategies for both start-up and incumbent organisations through real world and live case studies, help guide an organization through the maze of disruption as experienced in today’s competitive environment, and equally grasp the importance of corporate citizenship and social good.

Prerequisites: ELI 101, 102 or 103
Restrictions: Sophomore standing required
Semester credits: 4
This course requires instructor permission to register. Please email Chrys Hutchings to request permission.

ELI 345 Real Estate & Society

Faculty: Noel Johnson

Content: If you take this class, you’ll be able to understand the industry as well as the social forces influencing it. The class will provide you with both an understanding of how real estate works ( financial, legal, economics, etc.) and how specific areas of interest (housing, sustainability, etc.) manifest in real estate. The class will take a careful examination of how our society has created systems and incentives to make things the way they are today (ironically, at times… given how many are frustrated at various aspects related to real estate.). Students might think about how real estate is just the “built-environment” (versus the natural environment) and how we create our built-environment… but therefore it creates who we are. It informs local culture. It helps persons make money. It hinders households in many economic ways. So it is good…. And bad… The point of the class is to make students comparatively effective persons who know how to navigate this across life.

About the instructor: Noel is a real estate developer, business consultant and nonprofit leader. His real estate experience spans more than $1B of investment activity across more than 20 developments. His specific area of expertise and research pertains to the use of mass timber elements for sustainable, circular economy value-creation. Noel’s consulting work serves clients tackling built-environment and business evolution challenges. Noel is the President nonprofit Teacup Nordic; our region’s cross country skiing venue and programs provider. Noel is a graduate of Stanford Business School, Portland State University and Williams College.

Prerequisites: ELI 101, 102 or 103
Restrictions: Sophomore standing required
Semester credits: 4
This course requires instructor permission to register. Please email Chrys Hutchings to request permission.

ELI 345 Wealth Management (Investing & Influence) 

Faculty: Noel Johnson, 

Content: Money. It is an important, confusing and vast topic. Join us for an examination of what it is, how industry manages it and the influences that shape how you think about it. This class will teach you about the investment industry, how entrepreneurs navigate investors and the means to live a financially literate life. It will leverage and apply your education to empower confident optimists like you! From tangible and intangible currencies and assets, to investment theories and practices, to misperceptions and cultural differences, we will practice the skills you need to be a comparatively more capable professional. Join us to connect the dots across personal, business and society so you can be the change-maker our world needs!

About the instructor: This class is team-taught. Noel is a real estate developer, business consultant and nonprofit leader. His real estate experience spans more than $1B of investment activity across more than 20 developments. His specific area of expertise and research pertains to the use of mass timber elements for sustainable, circular economy value-creation. Noel’s consulting work serves clients tackling built-environment and business evolution challenges. Noel is the President nonprofit Teacup Nordic; our region’s cross country skiing venue and programs provider. Noel is a graduate of Stanford Business School, Portland State University and Williams College.

Iraqi businesswoman Dashne Kareem regularly joins the class to broaden perspectives across culture and gender as it relates to money, investing and norms. Dashne works as a Trade Advisory for the British Government, is a Fulbright Scholar and holds degrees from Portland State University and American University of Iraq, Sulaimani.

Prerequisites: ELI 101, 102 or 103
Restrictions: Sophomore standing required
Semester credits: 4
This course requires instructor permission to register. Please email Chrys Hutchings to request permission.

 ELI 345 Project Management

Faculty: TBD

Content: In an era of rapid social change, brutal competition, and thinning profits, project management is in every aspect of our world. It helps us interface with customers, support design and testing of new products, automate routine administrative and accounting functions, track inventories, and even facilitate collaborative project development in virtual teams.

This course moves you into the world of a project manager. It is built on integrating your project management knowledge of the fundamentals and basic principles grounded in Project Management Institute. Using real world case studies as well as you optionally developing your own project, we will act as project managers … not implementing nor designing, but rather determining what work and tasks need to be completed by the project team to introduce a new product to market while meeting supply chain life cycle deliverables. The course incorporates the knowledge areas of Project Management as defined by the Project Management Institute’s “Project Management Body of Knowledge” (PMBOK).

Prerequisites: ELI 101, 102 or 103
Restrictions: Sophomore standing required
Semester credits: 4
This course requires instructor permission to register. Please email Chrys Hutchings to request permission.

 ELI 349 Innovation At Work: Internship & Seminar