Global Entrepreneurship Program

The first year of the Global Entrepreneurship Program is divided into two courses:

Entrepreneur Essentials (Semester 1): This introductory course teaches students the fundamentals of entrepreneurial thinking. With a focus on ideation, they learn key business concepts like product development, strategy, management, marketing, and finance while exploring real-world case studies. By the middle of the semester, students pitch new ideas to our Administrative leadership team and seek approval and/or funding for value-added Chatham Hall programs. The final assessment for the course includes presentations of social impact projects students designed for the town of Chatham, VA.  Developing a sense of transformative thinking that can address social, ethical, and legal business challenges is a primary objective of the class. A key outcome is learning to confidently and competently articulate and present a well-thought business plan. 

Entrepreneur Action (Semester 2): In the second semester, students incubate their own business ideas, developing a business plan with a clear purpose and mission. They apply the skills learned in the first semester while exploring different sectors and industries, diving deeper into social entrepreneurship. The capstone project for this course involves formally presenting their business proposals at Chatham Hall’s Global Entrepreneurship Symposium, showcasing their proficiency and growth.

Students who excel in their first year and develop viable business ventures are invited to participate in Advanced Entrepreneurship. In this phase, students receive class instruction and one-on-one mentorship from the Program Director, who helps them develop, launch, and scale their own business, product, or program. This often includes seeking endorsements and funding to bring these ventures to fruition.

The program is built on three key pillars that guide students’ entrepreneurial journeys:

1. Chatham Hall: Students first explore ways to add value to the school, pitching ideas that enhance the campus and its community.

2. Local Community: Next, students examine the town of Chatham and propose products, programs, or services that create social or economic value for the local area.

3. Global Impact: Finally, students think on a global scale, developing ideas that can be implemented anywhere in the world to create positive and lasting change.

Since its pilot year in 2019-2020, Chatham Hall's Global Entrepreneurship Program has grown rapidly. In its first year, five students successfully completed the program. Since then, we’ve had students develop and launch eight viable businesses, while three school programs have been approved and funded by Chatham Hall. Additionally, the town of Chatham has benefited from many student proposals, including social impact projects and two social entrepreneurship initiatives that have grown into global fundraisers.

Our students have achieved remarkable success. For instance, the class owns and operates a food cart, "A Bite of the World," featured at school community events. They also inspired the creation of the Money, Money, Money Club, which has engaged over 50 students in financial literacy activities. Our annual Global Entrepreneurship Symposium is a celebrated event where students present their ideas to the school’s Administrative Leadership Team and the wider community.

Students who complete the program have gone on to attend prestigious summer institutes such as Wharton and are accepted at top universities like Vanderbilt, UNC Chapel Hill, and Rice University, often pursuing business degrees. 

The Global Entrepreneurship Program continues to inspire young women at Chatham Hall to embrace their potential, develop innovative ideas, and make meaningful contributions to their communities and the world.