About the class:
The Master Class on Education Innovation, led by renowned faculty from the University of Pennsylvania, provides the knowledge, skills, and tools needed to seed, accelerate, and scale entrepreneurial practice in education.
Entrepreneurial thinking requires creativity, problem-solving, experimentation, market understanding and exploration. In this Master Class you will: create an innovation profile of your institution or company and construct a blueprint for change; build and test a case for your ideas by understanding the wants and needs of your target audiences; and cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset (and movement) to leverage and scale innovation.
There has never been a more critical time to accelerate change in our education organizations, systems and global communities. Join our faculty to explore research on the culture and practice of innovation, apply innovation frameworks and digital tools, and learn from the journey stories of seasoned entrepreneurs, educators, and investors.
Access an exclusive network of global leaders and tell your story.
Entrepreneurial thinking requires creativity, problem-solving, experimentation, market understanding and exploration. In this Master Class you will: create an innovation profile of your institution or company and construct a blueprint for change; build and test a case for your ideas by understanding the wants and needs of your target audiences; and cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset (and movement) to leverage and scale innovation.
There has never been a more critical time to accelerate change in our education organizations, systems and global communities. Join our faculty to explore research on the culture and practice of innovation, apply innovation frameworks and digital tools, and learn from the journey stories of seasoned entrepreneurs, educators, and investors.
Access an exclusive network of global leaders and tell your story.
Learning outcomes:
The Learner will be able to:
- Define innovation and craft your why statement(s)
- Understand, assess and reflect on cultural conditions that accelerate or inhibit innovation in your organization.
- Assess, leverage and cultivate your Entrepreneurial Mindset (and your organization’s!)
- Describe your innovation and/or idea and why the innovation matters
- Tell your story of innovation
About Dr. Barbara Kurshan, ECC, President and Penn GSE, Senior Fellow and Innovation Advisor:
Dr. Barbara (Bobbi) Kurshan has honed her vision of “what can be” using technology while supporting the growth of new education companies and developing innovative software products. She currently serves as a Senior Fellow and Innovation Advisor at the Graduate School of Education at the University of Pennsylvania where she builds and advises education innovation ecosystems for researchers, teaches, investors and entrepreneurs. Previously, as the President of Educorp Consultants Corporation she provided strategic consulting in the areas of education, technology and innovation; and as the Executive Vice President of WorldSage, a consortium of for-profit higher education institutions in the EU to address education for the 21st century. As the past Executive Director of Curriki she helped to build one of the most innovative and robust global open source education communities. Dr. Kurshan has previously served as the Co-CEO of Core Learning, an education investment fund, and the Chief Academic Officer of bigchalk. She currently serves on the Board of several companies including APEI, Tulane University College of Engineering and Science, and many education technology companies. She is the author of several books, articles and regularly blogs for Forbes.com. She received her MS in Computer Science and her Ed.D. in Instructional Technology from Virginia Tech.
About Dr. Jenny Zapf, Director, Penn GSE Education Entrepreneurship Program
Dr. Jenny Zapf, Ph.D. is the Founding Director of the MSEd/MBA in Education Entrepreneurship at the Penn’s Graduate School of Education and the Wharton School. In 2019, Dr. Zapf, Dr. Kurshan and Mr. Legrand launched Penn’s Global Certificate in Education Innovation. Dr. Zapf has trained thousands of education, business, and industry leaders on building, scaling and evaluating new ventures. She has held leadership roles in higher education institutions, non-profit incubators and research institutes. At Penn, she teachers the first course in Education Evaluation for Innovation. Dr. Zapf’s research looks at how we cultivate an entrepreneurial mindset. Dr. Zapf received a M.A. in Educational Policy and Administration from Stanford University and a Ph.D. In Educational Evaluation from the University of Virginia.
About Mr. Serrano Legrand, MAT, Global Projects Coordinator - Education Entrepreneurship Program, Penn GSE
Serrano Legrand is a 4th year Doctoral Candidate in Teaching, Learning and Leading at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education. His research and work spans the intersections of entrepreneurialism, innovation, risk-taking and leadership development for all actors across the education ecosystem. He is also the current global projects coordinator for Penn GSE’s new global certificate program in education entrepreneurship and innovation. In this role, Serrano helps to run the day-to-day operations of the program. He also co-designs the program curriculum and teaches (Entrepreneurial Mindset and leadership) in the program. For the past 5 years, Serrano has consulted and worked with over 500 educational leaders (including but not limited to classroom teachers, school administrators and senior district administrators) to help build their individual and organizational capacities in imagining and enacting a better education system for students and adults. Prior to his time at Penn, Serrano taught and held various leadership positions in a K-12 setting. He also founded two after-school programs that sought to build the entrepreneurial capacities of his students. Originally from Brooklyn, New York, Serrano graduated from Northeastern University with his Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA) as well as Relay’s Graduate School of Education with a Master of Arts in Teaching (MAT).
