Lawrence University in Appleton, WI Offers New Business Major

Lawrence University incorporates new business major into traditional liberal arts and sciences studies.

By Livability on July 26, 2023

Business, conservatory and the liberal arts and sciences are making beautiful music together at Lawrence University, thanks to a new business and entrepreneurship major being introduced for the 2023-24 academic year.

Located in Appleton, WI, Lawrence University has been providing students with best-in-class academics in the college of liberal arts and sciences and its world-class conservatory of music since the mid-1800s. And this expansive, interdisciplinary curriculum has been fertile ground upon which an engaged, collaborative community of scholars and artists works toward four bachelor’s degrees in 55 discrete areas of study.

Now, Lawrence is helping students turn their intellectual and creative Lawrence University passions into exciting new careers with a new business and entrepreneurship major, combining a core business curriculum with a liberal arts mindset and emphasizing innovation and the social/environmental impacts of businesses. Experiential learning is also a key component – from internships to career preparation.

“We want our students to understand the big picture and context in which business operates, both for-profit and nonprofit,” says Lawrence University professor Claudena Skran, chair of the Innovation & Entrepreneurship program that includes the new major. “We want them to understand not just how to get their first job but essentially how to build a career – with a clear understanding of the role that business plays in that career.”

Brian Pertl, dean of the Conservatory of Music, has straddled the worlds of arts and business for much of his professional life. Even though he was trained as a musician – receiving an B.M. in trombone performance from Lawrence in 1986 – Pertl spent 16 years working at Microsoft before returning to Lawrence as dean in 2008.

“We don’t want students to graduate but have no idea what to do with their talents. We want them to be thinking entrepreneurially while they’re here,” Pertl says. “Instead of seeing business as only spreadsheets, strategic plans and profit statements, we want students to look at business as an opportunity for creativity and innovation. This new major can be part of that journey.”

While there are numerous ways in which business expertise can be helpful in a career in the arts (concert management, theater production, etc.), Skran says the new major also takes a more expansive view at how modern business affects the world.

“Business is such an important part of society. We want and need to incorporate the topic comprehensively,” Skran says. “So, we look at what businesses are, what they do, and how they fit into broader social issues such as diversity and sustainability.”

In addition to the new major, Lawrence University is working to bring students and faculty together with the Fox Valley business community through a related center for Business & Entrepreneurship, offering compelling academic, internship and volunteer opportunities.

“Everybody in the greater Appleton community could benefit from this generative center,” Pertl says. “It can be a place to spark creativity. A place where you can generate ideas for the future and make possibilities into realities.”

Much like Lawrence University itself.