The Hickingbotham School of Business offers an invaluable opportunity for students to connect with other students, as well as academic and business leaders on an international level through entrepreneurial-based projects. This organization is called Enactus, Entrepreneurial Action Us.
“Our goal at OBU Enactus is to empower individuals through social, economic, entrepreneurial and environmental activities that will improve their standards of living,” senior accounting major and Enactus president, Alexandra Lawson said.
The organization was originally founded in 1975 under the name of SIFE, Students in Free Enterprise, and was brought to Ouachita in 2006. Within the last few years, SIFE turned into Enactus to remind students to initiate ideas with passion and innovation, to experience sustainable impact with integrity and to collaborate with others to create a better world.
“Students in OBU Enactus gain real world business experience and get to network with big names in the world of business. They also get to help people around the world and in our community,” Lawson said.
Students work on a variety of projects throughout their time in the organization, including- Dr. Jack’s Coffee, Ouachita Angels Network, Arkadelphia Promise and Mission 58:10, previously known as Mobile Pack.
In 2012, Ouachita Enactus students created a business plan to not only serve their fellow students coffee, but also help orphans in Honduras. The previous Evans Student Center coffee shop was switched over, and Dr. Jack’s was born.
Enactus is currently working on a new project, Ouachita Angels Network, to help entrepreneurs prep and get ready before they present their ideas to real-life investors.
The Arkadelphia Promise serves students within Arkadelphia to encourage them to pursue higher education after high school. OBU Enactus offers tutoring programs and helps students fill out forms for college applications and other scholarships.
Mission 58:10 helps to collect food items to distribute within the Arkadelphia area. The project is currently geared towards helping to stop local children from going home hungry on the weekends.
Through these projects, Enactus has accomplished and helped many people, both within the United States and internationally.
“Through Mission 58:10, we have given food to people all over the Americas. This year the food we collected went to two local organizations here in Clark County. Dr. Jack’s Coffee has provided jobs for people through our partnership with the Guatemalan coffee plantation, as well as a place for orphans to live because a third of our profits go to an orphanage in Honduras,” Lawson said. “We have also empowered young students through the Arkadelphia Promise by helping raise scholarship money to send them to college.”
As president of Enactus, Lawson schedules meetings, works with project leaders to direct them toward success, recruits new members and acts as a liaison between the academic advisor and the project leaders.
“I joined Enactus my freshman year to connect with the business school and my fellow classmates. I have had many amazing experiences through the organization, but my most valuable would have to be being on the presentation team,” Lawson said. “I have been able to get closer with a lot of my fellow students in the organization, meet many professionals at networking events and Enactus competitions and become closer with Dean McKinney, Dean of the school of business, through my leadership opportunities.”
Presentation team members focus on perfecting their presentation skills in order to communicate the results of each project Enactus completes. Members present in a competitive environment on a state, regional and national level.
“Presentation team turned my good semester into a great one because I was able to become friends with people I never would have crossed paths with. I made connections with business and I was able to travel,” senior mass communications major, Ian Craft said.
Working with other students, as well as alum and business professionals, allows members to build their connections and prepare for their careers after graduation.
“Enactus taught me responsibility and leadership even when it’s difficult. I am happy to be a part of an organization that does so much to give back to my school and community,” senior accounting major, Meredith Ellis said.
Students learn the skills to work well with others in a team setting and empower others to better serve their communities.
“This organization is an asset to the business school because not only does it help our community, it makes OBU look good through our success. It also gives Ouachita students many opportunities to succeed and get experience doing what they love to do: giving to people in need to empower themselves through business endeavors,” Lawson said.
If interested in becoming involved with OBU’s Enactus organization, students can attend one of their meetings or email enactus@obu.edu to get more information on all of the projects.
Story by: Abbey Little, Staff Writer
