ETS Course Schedule
Entrepreneur Training for Success Syllabus, Spring Semester
March 8 – June 23, 2012
This program will be offered at two locations:
- Rockville Women’s Business Center at 95 Monroe Street, Rockville, MD
- EWI Headquarters at 320 South Henry Street, Alexandria, VA
(ONLY Monday evening classes will be in both locations, all other meetings will be held ONLY at the Rockville Women’s Business Center unless otherwise noted)
Please email Shannon Lynberg at shannon@ewint.org with questions.
The 60-hour instruction curriculum includes 7 teaching modules:
(1) Business Plan Development (11 classes)
(2) Financial Empowerment (3 classes)
(3) Business Lab (3 classes)
(4) Business Plan Pitch (1 class)
(5) Leadership Development, Service and Philanthropy(1 class)
(6) Mentoring (ongoing in-class and one-on-one)
(7) Graduation and Business Showcase (after completion of all training requirements)
Full Calendar of ETS Classes, March 8 – June 23, 2012
Meet and Greet (Alexandria, VA)
Thursday, March 8, 2012
6:30pm – 8:30pm
- Meet with other women in the course, trainers, and EWI staff
Week 1 – Your Passion, Innovation and Entrepreneurship (VA/MD)
Monday, March 12, 2012
6:30pm – 9:00pm
- Welcome and Introductions
- Curriculum discussion, assignments and business plan presentation
- Assessment
- Visioning and Goals
Week 1 – Financial Empowerment Class 1 (Alexandria, VA)
Tuesday, March 13 2012
6:30pm-8:30pm
Paulette (Right) sharing her African Memory Game with the Class. (Spring 2011)
Week 2 – Getting Organized and Finding your Niche (VA/MD)
Monday, March 19, 2012
6:30pm-9:00pm
- Time Management and Getting Organized
- Putting together your Portfolio, Bio, Resume, and Artist Statement
- Discovering your Niche
- Identifying your Target Audience
Week 3 – Business Startup – Making it Legal and the Business Plan (VA/MD)
Monday, March 26, 2012
6:30pm-9:00pm
- Types of Business Models
- What it takes to run a successful business
- Understanding the Business Plan and Business Plan Pitch
Week 4 – Marketing Part I: Market Analysis & Research, Business Planning, and Pricing with Capital One Mentors in Class (VA/MD)
Monday April 2, 2012
6:30pm-9:00pm
- Understanding Your Competition
- Identifying Channels of Distribution
- Market Research Methods
- Determining and Setting Prices
Week 5 – Marketing Part II: Promotional Plans and Sales Strategy (VA/MD)
Monday April 9, 2012
6:30pm-9:00pm
- Creating a Marketing Plan
- Advertisement
- Get Publicity
- Writing Press Releases
- Sales Strategies
Week 5 – Financial Empowerment Class 2
(Rockville, MD)
Tuesday April 10, 2012
6:30pm-8:30pm
Week 5 – Marketing and Strategy Lab Class (location to be determined)
Saturday, April 14, 2012
10:30am – 1:30pm
- Mentors will be available to help file incorporation papers, further develop marketing plans, and craft social media strategies.
Week 6 – Branding and Presentation (VA/MD)
Monday, April 16, 2012
6:30pm-9:00pm
- Presenting Yourself and Your Business
- What is Branding?
- Building a Brand
- Creating a Branding Strategy
Week 6 – Leadership Development, Service and Philanthropy (Rockville, MD)
Wednesday, April 18, 2012
6:30pm-9:00pm
Week 7 – Online Communications and E-Commerce (VA/MD)
Monday, April 23, 2012
6:30pm-9:00pm
- Overview of online tools – blogging, facebook, and twitter
- Etsy and other E-commerce tools
- Taking Pictures
- Case Studies of how companies have successfully used online tools to increase Sales
Week 8 – Public Speaking, Negotiation and Business Plan Pitch Practice (VA/MD)
Monday, April 30, 2012
6:30pm-9:00pm
- Learn the basics of public speaking
- Craft an Elevator Speech
- Learning how to negotiate
******Midterm Evaluation**********
Week 8 – Social Media
(Rockville, MD)
Saturday, May 5 2012
10:30am -1:30pm
- Learn how you can easily set up a website or blog
- Learn how to effectively use twitter, facebook, and other social media tools
- Learn how to successfully drive traffic to your site
Week 9 – Budgets, Cash Management, Record Keeping for Taxes with Capital One Mentors in Class (VA/MD)
Monday, May 7, 2012
6:30pm-9:00pm
- Understand how simple budgeting tools work
- Identify ways you can budget and track your expenses to make the most of the money you earn
- Determine action steps you can take to start meeting your financial goals
- Breaking Even and Making a Profit
- Creating Financial Statements
- Understanding Taxes
Week 9 – Financial Empowerment Class 3 (Rockville, MD)
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
6:30pm-8:30pm
Week 10 – Event Planning, Partnership Building (VA/MD)
Monday, May 14, 2012
6:30pm-9:00pm
- Learn how to plan an event from the location search, to PR, to the event day
- Cover the basics of selling at events
- Writing and tracking receipts and sales
- Co-operation and building consciousnesses partnerships
- The Ins and outs of networking
Week 10 – Dealing with Legal Issues, Applying for Grants, and Attracting Capital (Rockville, MD)
Saturday, May 19, 2012
10:30am – 1:30pm
- Learn the basics of grants and how to write a proposal
- Learn how to apply for small business loans
- Learn how to attract investors
Get all your legal questions answered (Copyrights, Licensing, Incorporation, etc.)
Spring 2011 Graduate Kudzai (owner of KG Spotless) with Erica Marcus from IRC at Graduation.
Week 11 – Business Plan Preparation and Review with Capital One Bankers (VA/MD)
Monday, May 21, 2012
6:30pm-9:00pm
*****Biz Plan Submission Deadline: Submit your business plan to Trainer*****
Week 12 – Business Plan Presentation to a Panel of Visiting Professionals (VA/MD)
Monday, June 4, 2012
6:30pm-9:00pm
Week 13 – Leadership Development and Giving Back Through Service (VA/MD)
Monday, June 18, 2012
6:30pm-8:30pm
Week 14 – Graduation Celebration and Business Showcase (location to be determined)
Saturday, June 23, 2012
4:00pm-7:00pm