UM System Entrepreneurship Educator of the Year Award to Chair of the Department of Global Entrepreneurship and Innovation

University of Missouri-Kansas City Henry W. Bloch/Missouri Endowed Chair Jeff Hornsby has been named the UM System Entrepreneurship Educator of the Year for his distinguished activity in developing and nurturing entrepreneurs.

Mark McIntosh, University of Missouri System vice president for research and economic development, presented the award April 6. It was the second annual award, and the 2017 award winner also was a member of the UMKC faculty, Rubey M. Hulen Professor of Law Anthony Luppino.

“Cultivating entrepreneurs who contribute to the economic vitality of the state is part of our critical mission as a public research university. We are thrilled to have educators like Dr. Hornsby leading these initiatives,” McIntosh said. “Jeff represents everything an entrepreneurship educator should be and his many contributions are greatly appreciated.”

Hornsby joined the UMKC Bloch School of Management in 2013 where he also serves as the Director of the Regnier Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation and Chair of the Department of Global Entrepreneurship and Innovation. Prior to UMKC, Hornsby spent more than 20 years as an entrepreneurship educator at both Kansas State University and Ball State University. In his five years at UMKC, his many accomplishments include raising more than $1.5 million in grants and other funding, facilitating the mapping and redesign of entrepreneurship curriculum, developing the Kangaroo Idea Jump Competition and Entrepreneurship Ambassadors Program and continuing to grow existing programs such as E-Scholars. As a scholar of entrepreneurship, Hornsby has published more than 160 articles, six books and been cited more than 8,000 times.

Judges for the award were Nathalie Duval-Couetli of Purdue University and Kevin McCurren of Michigan State University. They noted that Hornsby is a well-rounded educator with contributions to the scholarly discipline as well as student learning. They appreciated not only his scholarly contributions, but his efforts in cultivating many student entrepreneurs, as well as his national service to the profession.

The award presentation took place during the second annual UM System Entrepreneurial Educator Summit. More than 80 educators from all four UM System campuses gathered for two days in Columbia to focus on entrepreneurial education. The conference provided a collaborative environment for the attendees to share best practices, brainstorm new approaches, and better understand the resources available to them as part of the UM System.