NIACC John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center Wins Innovation Award

National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE) and Accelper Consulting awarded the North Iowa Area Community College John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center (JPEC) its highest national honor.

"NIACC’s efforts through the JPEC have made a significant impact on our region, and we are proud that those efforts are being recognized with this award,” Dr. Deb Derr, NIACC president, said.

The Innovation Award recognition was announced and presented at the NACCE conference on Monday, October 12, in Chicago, Ill. 

"To be named as the top center in the nation is a great endorsement for all the hard work of our staff supporting advancement of the North Iowa region in business creation and ownership, entrepreneurship education and furthering partnerships to stimulate entrepreneurship,” Jamie T. Zanios, NIACC vice president of JPEC and Institutional Advancement, said.

The NACCE Innovation Award recognizes entrepreneurship centers and their positive impact on the communities they serve. The NIACC JPEC received a plaque recognizing successful deployment of innovation and entrepreneurship practices and creation of new jobs. In addition, the JPEC will receive complimentary Master Business Innovator Certification Train-the-trainer sessions in order to teach Business Innovation to their students and business clients and accelerate innovation in the communities the JPEC serves.

"This national recognition by NACCE is a tremendous validation of the hard work, innovation and leadership that the NIACC JPEC has performed in North Iowa. I couldn’t be more pleased with the work that NIACC and the JPEC have done to help drive entrepreneurship and job growth through business starts,” John G. Pappajohn, who has provided funding for the five JPEC’s in the state of Iowa since he helped found them in 1997, said. The other JPEC’s are located at the University of Iowa, Iowa State University, University of Northern Iowa and Drake University.

The John Pappajohn Entrepreneurial Center is located on the North Iowa Area Community College campus in Mason City and provides college level courses and degree programs in entrepreneurship, as well as comprehensive consulting services for business start-ups, existing industries and owner transitions in the North Iowa region. Space is available for start-up businesses in the North Iowa Business Incubator. For more information, contact the NIACC JPEC at 641-422-4111.