Kansas State University

MANHATTAN — Chad Jackson is the new director of the Center for the Advancement of Entrepreneurship at Kansas State University's College of Business Administration.

Jackson had been serving as the center's interim director for the past year.

"Chad Jackson is the perfect fit for our entrepreneurial program now and in the future," said Dave Dreiling, chair of the center's advisory board.

"His unique background has given him a keen understanding of what it takes to start and run a business. In his time on campus and in running the program on an interim basis, he has proven his abilities to relate to all the stakeholders, those being the students and faculty across all colleges at K-State, and donors and investors in the program," Dreiling said. "I am confident Chad will take the center to a whole new level, resulting in a program that ties in our goals for the College of Business Administration, K-State 2025 and leading the state of Kansas in churning out graduates that start businesses, create jobs and grow our state from within."

The Center for the Advancement of Entrepreneurship is a universitywide initiative to enhance the entrepreneurial environment at the university and throughout Kansas. The center offers an entrepreneurship major and a minor, which is open to students in all colleges. It also provides a variety of opportunities open to all entrepreneurs, including entrepreneurial idea competitions, student venture accelerator and venture funding.

"Chad Jackson is the right choice to head the Center for the Advancement of Entrepreneurship," said Ali Malekzadeh, Edgerley family dean of the College of Business Administration. "He has a long history of small business development in the state and knows the needs of the rural communities as well as the metropolitan areas. More importantly, he understands how critical collaboration is to the success of entrepreneurship in Kansas. With his philosophy of student-focused innovation, I know the center will flourish under his direction."

Jackson, who earned his doctoral degree from Kansas State University in 2014, served as the associate director of the Center for the Advancement of Entrepreneurship and instructor of management since the center's inception in 2008. He was named interim director in 2013. In his roles at the center, he has developed and led experiential learning initiatives for student entrepreneurs and taught a variety of entrepreneurship courses.

"I am thrilled for the opportunity to be able to continue to work with our passionate students and supporters," Jackson said. "I am looking forward to working with entrepreneurs across Kansas, and continuing to build upon the national reputation of K-State's entrepreneurship program."