The Woltemade Center for Economics, Business, and Entrepreneurship at Ohio Wesleyan University offers the interdisciplinary Carol Latham Bishop Ventures (LBV) program for students seeking to become the next generation of entrepreneurial and business trailblazers.
Ohio Wesleyan student Kennedy Watkins (right) runs her own business, Gilded Teas. All OWU student entrepreneurs have access to the Latham Bishop Ventures program to help them succeed in their ventures. (Photo by Paul Vernon)
The Latham Bishop Ventures (LBV) program is an institutional collaboration managed by The Woltemade Center to expand the scope and impact of entrepreneurial education and opportunities at OWU. Building upon the success of the Latham Entrepreneurial Scholars Program (LESP), LBV provides a comprehensive entrepreneurial ecosystem that is accessible to all interested OWU students. The program fosters and grows upon the entrepreneurial culture on campus, attracts and retains entrepreneurially minded students, and creates a community of students passionate about entrepreneurship and innovation.
LBV offers a range of programming and resources to support students at different stages of their entrepreneurial journey. Through seminars, hands-on workshops, and mentorship, students have the opportunity to develop an entrepreneurial mindset and deepen their understanding of entrepreneurship. LBV provides experiential learning opportunities, allowing students to turn their ideas into business plans, participate in Pitch OWU, and receive mentorship from OWU alumni entrepreneurs. Additionally, LBV offers financial support and individual mentoring to vetted student business plans, enabling them to launch and grow their ventures.
LBV empowers OWU students to embark on a transformative journey of entrepreneurship supported by a rich array of resources and opportunities. It serves as an investment in students, equipping them with the necessary tools, funding, and mentorship to bring their entrepreneurial visions to life. Through LBV, students will explore and develop their ideas, participate in national competitions, and contribute to OWU's thriving entrepreneurial culture. By leveraging faculty expertise, entrepreneurial curriculum, and the distinctive OWU Connection experience, LBV creates an environment where students can unleash their entrepreneurial potential and turn their dreams into tangible achievements.
The Latham Bishop Ventures program was created with a gift of time, talent, and treasure from OWU alumna Carol Latham, Class of 1961. A chemistry major at Ohio Wesleyan, Latham is the retired founder, president, and CEO of Thermagon, Inc., a custom manufacturer of high-performance heat-transfer materials for electronic components. Under her leadership, Thermagon grew to sales of $18 million annually worldwide.
LBV Ecosystem
Mindset: Provide opportunities for students to learn about entrepreneurship through seminars and hands-on workshops.
Knowledge: Provide learning options for students to go deeper in their understanding of entrepreneurship.
Experience: Opportunities for students to develop ideas into business plans, present those plans in OWU and national competitions, be mentored by OWU alumni entrepreneurs, be immersed in the entrepreneurial culture, and intern with entrepreneurs.
Launch and Mentorship: Provide financial support and individual mentoring to vetted student business plans.
LBV Program Providers
The Woltemade Center
Delaware Entrepreneurial Center at OWU
OWU Connection
Department of Economics and Business
Latham Bishop Ventures Fall 2025 Program Schedule
August
Career Community Fair - HWCC Atrium - August 27 from 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Entrepreneurship Beyond the College Walls - R.W. Corns Building, Room 312 - Tuesday, September 9th from 12 PM - 1 PM - RSVP - Lunch Provided
You can learn a lot about entrepreneurship in the classroom. But you cannot learn to become an entrepreneur until you stick your neck out and start doing. The first step in that journey is to engage with the entrepreneurial ecosystem in our local area and nationally. In this workshop, you will discover various opportunities to learn about and to pursue entrepreneurship beyond the classroom walls.
12 PM - 2 PM - Black Wall Street - Hamilton-Williams Campus Center Atrium
Guests are invited to learn, network, and shop from local BIPOC-owned businesses and OWU BIPOC student-entrepreneurs promoting their ventures. Black Wall Street is inspired by the legacy of Tulsa, Oklahoma's Greenwood District, known as Black Wall Street. Free food will be provided by Donna's Delicious Dozen and Tricia's Creole Café. This OWU event is in partnership with The Woltemade Center for Economics, Business, and Entrepreneurship; Office of Multicultural Student Affairs, Delaware Entrepreneurial Center at OWU; and OWU Connection. As events are finalized, they will be added to the conference webpage at owu.edu/ConnectionConference.
Where Do Startup Ideas Come From? - R.W. Corns Building, Room 312 - Thursday, September 25th from 12 PM - 1 PM - RSVP- Lunch Provided
We hear from a lot of students who say they would like to become entrepreneurs but don't know how to start. They don't know where to get ideas for a startup. People like that are sometimes called "wantrepreneurs." They want to do it but are stuck. This workshop will show you how you can find your next breakthrough idea for a startup of your own. It's easier than you may think. You just have to know where to look and when to pivot.
October
Mastering Your Pitch - R.W. Corns Building, Room 312 - Thursday, October 16th from 12 PM - 1 PM - RSVP - Lunch Provided
Startups succeed or fail on the ability of their founders to clearly and persuasively articulate their business concept to audiences of various types. The vehicle for doing this is called 'the pitch." In this workshop, you will learn—and practice—fundamental concepts that will greatly help you to pitch your idea. We are deliberately holding this event shortly before the entrepreneurship competition (USEC) that will be held in conjunction with the Kickstart Ohio Conference. After this workshop, you will be well-equipped to observe and evaluate other entrepreneurs' pitches, or perhaps to enhance your own pitch in time for the USEC or the OWU Pitch Competition coming in February.
Kickstart Ohio and the U.S. Entrepreneurship Competition at Ohio Wesleyan University bring together students, professionals, investors, and business leaders to celebrate innovation, share ideas, and turn startup dreams into reality. Participants in the USEC will pitch to experienced judges, gain insights from industry leaders, and connect with Ohio's vibrant entrepreneurial community. Presented by the Delaware Entrepreneurial Center.
November
Hearts of Glass Documentary Screening - Strand Theater - Tuesday, November 11th at 6:30 PM - Free Admission
Hearts of Glass follows the tumultuous first 15 months of operation of Vertical Harvest (VH), a multi-story, state-of-the-art hydroponic greenhouse that grows crops while providing meaningful, competitively-paid jobs for people with disabilities. The film weaves the story of VH's launch with the personal journeys of several employees with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). Innovation and inclusion create a fertile environment for people and plants to grow. VH is a vertical farm on 1/10 of an acre at an elevation of 6,237 feet in Jackson, Wyoming, a mountain town with extreme seasonal fluctuations in weather, population, and demand for goods and services. The employees with disabilities, part of an underestimated, underemployed and vulnerable population, are a vital and visible part of this community-based business. Hearts of Glass is an intimate portrait of social entrepreneurship at the intersection of disability rights and sustainable, local food production.
Entrepreneurship Course Offerings:
BUS
260
Social Entrepreneurship
BUS
110
Entrepreneurial Mindset
BUS
425
Entrepreneurship
Interested in Mentorship?
Please see our extensive list of Alumni Partners who are eager to help students and fellow Alumni with their career and professional goals. The individuals below are happy to be contacted for 1:1 conversations, presentation invitations, and other engagements. Please click on their profiles to learn more and to see their contact details. We encourage students, faculty, Alumni, and staff to engage with these Alumni and form valuable OWU Connections.
Each OWU student has the opportunity to experience a life-changing OWU Connection experience. These signature experiences marry curriculum and hands-on activity are what makes OWU unique. LBV provides the opportunity to students to take a passion for entrepreneurship, coupled with faculty and entrepreneurial expertise and curriculum, and make their dreams, a reality.
