LEARNING TO THRIVE: HOW BUSINESS IS DONE AT LANSING’S COLLEGE

BY ANDY BRENT

Communities thrive on business and good work. In order for good work to be available, communities must be able to field the requirements of business operations. It is for this reason that community colleges are important for business development – they ensure that businesses will have qualified people to hire.

At Lansing Community College (LCC), business has never been better.

In 2022, the former Business and Economics Department officially rebranded to become the School of Business at LCC. This change brings cohesion to a department that was, at one time, divided between more than six individual areas. By combining LCC’s programs in Accounting, Business, Insurance & Risk Management, Management and Leadership, Economics and Marketing, the college intends to develop an educational community dedicated to meeting the needs of businesses in mid-Michigan.

School of Business Director Jeremy Davis understands creating a business-oriented career community will be beneficial to students and local businesses alike.

“The School of Business will prepare students in a couple of important ways,” Davis said. “First, for the student who is interested in getting right into the workforce, we offer 11 applied associate degrees. These degrees are designed to give students the education along with the skills necessary to be successful. These skills are ones that our community partners have told us they are looking for in the next generation of professionals.

“Second, we have partnered with several four-year institutions to make the transition into a bachelor’s degree program as easy as possible,” Davis continued. “Working with the schools individually, we have created enhanced degree pathways, where a student can earn up to 90 credit hours at LCC and transfer directly into the four-year institution’s business programs.”

Before LCC made these important renovations to its business program, the aforementioned areas were all independent of one another. In order to improve business education for students, the college created a block of common classes providing all business-adjacent majors a core set of classes to prepare them for a career. This led to the exploration of rebranding options for the department.

In addition to fulfilling the needs of local businesses, LCC’s dedicated School of Business for students can be a point of distinction and help with student recruitment. As students who are interested in business careers start their search, they see four-year colleges and some two-year colleges list their business programs using terms like “College of Business” or “School of Business.” LCC’s new program raises its estimation among students, and at the same time, readies students for careers that benefit the businesses they serve.

School of Business and Faculty Member Mary Stucko was instrumental in beginning the Insurance and Risk Management Program at LCC, and works closely with students and local business partners. She understands how important it is for students to learn business for the real world.

“Our business programs stand out because we are integrated in the business community, working with our business partners to learn what skills they are requiring from our LCC students,” Stucko said. “We are continually improving our program to best meet the needs of the ever-changing business environment.”

LCC’s commitment to business development goes beyond the undergraduate classroom. At LCC’s West Campus, the Business and Community Institute and Small Business Development Center serve local businesses.

LCC’s Business and Community Institute (BCI) utilizes mobile, sustainable training to provide businesses with innovation solutions and operational synergy. Its customized programs are designed to create and retain jobs across the Greater Lansing region and provide local businesses with the means of controlling their own employee development. The Small Business Development Center (SBDC) teaches sustainable practices and strategies to entrepreneurs and local business leaders through detailed analysis and strategy. The two offices are held within LCC’s Community Education and Workforce Development Division (CEWD).

Local insurance provider The Eric King Agency (EKA), depends upon the SBDC to grow his business.

“I’ve been working with SBDC, and we talked about the growth plan, we’ve talked about loans, things I wouldn’t have thought about,” the EKA reported. “I never thought I needed a commercial loan. I didn’t think I was looking to expand or do anything like that. But I’m listening to SBDC talk about things we can do, and he made sense. The very first thing I do when someone asks me or says to me, they want to start a small business, or ‘I want to be like you,’ I give them the link to the SBDC website and just tell them that’s the way you want to get started.”

Dean of LCC Community and Workforce Development Bo Garcia sees BCI and the SBDC as important drivers of the regional economy.

“Through the CEWD, LCC helps stimulate our regional economy in numerous and diverse ways,” Garcia said. “The SBDC delivers no-cost consulting and training to individuals starting up, expanding, or under crisis management and turn-around conditions.

“BCI delivers accelerated, customized, multi-industry corporate training, coaching and consulting to large regional industry partners,” Garcia continued. “The BCI delivers services across various industries and diverse areas including but not limited to, quality, IT, manufacturing, healthcare and more.”

LCC’s CEWD has, to date, helped more than 6,000 individuals acquire or improve business and workforce skillsets through dynamic trainings. Ultimately, this progress enhances mid-Michigan’s competitive advantage and grows the regional economy.

In the wake of pandemic quarantine, business dynamics are more important than ever. To discover what the BCI at LCC can do for your business, visit LCC.edu/bci. For information about the SBDC, visit lcc.edu/SBDC. To enroll in classes at LCC’s new School of Business, visit lcc.edu/schoolofbusiness.