Wright was asked to speak at the conference because of Dartmouth's well known commitment to diversity, he said.
"I think some of the people running the conference were aware of the programs we have at Dartmouth, and particularly the role the Tuck School [of Business] has played internationally. They've been running a minority business education program since 1979," Wright said.
Under Wright, the College created the Dartmouth Entrepreneurial Network, which offers educational opportunities and guidance to Dartmouth students, faculty and alumni looking to start businesses in the Upper Valley.
While Dartmouth does not offer specific classes in entrepreneurship education, it has produced generations of entrepreneurs.
"As a liberal arts college, Dartmouth does not teach entrepreneurship, but we do teach the building blocks such as critical thinking and reading, how to analyze problems, creativity and how to work as a team. These are the underpinnings of entrepreneurship," Wright said.
The forum brought together leaders in the fields of academics, business and government to encourage black entrepreneurial activity across the country.
Wright, who is a former professor of American political history, joined presidents of over 25 historically black colleges, 120 top students from those institutions, the presidents of six major philanthropic foundations, senior government officials and 35 CEOs and senior vice presidents of Fortune 500 companies.
Other presenters at the forum included Dr. Beverly Tatum, president of Spelman College and Dr. James Mosner, chancellor of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. All three later participated in a roundtable discussion to address how entrepreneurship education might directly benefit black students. The discussion was facilitated by the Kansas City based Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.
According to the foundation's research, minorities are 50 percent more likely to engage in start-up business activities than Caucasians, but they often do not have the access to tools such as education, starting capital and networking to sustain these ventures.
"Statistics for business formation reveal that minorities are not as successful in getting their businesses off the ground or in growing them to scale," Carl Schramm, president and CEO of the Kauffman Foundation, said in a press release.
The conference was sponsored by Minority Entrepreneurship, Inc. and Opportunity Funding Corporation, groups that strive to help historically black colleges develop a successful and comprehensive entrepreneurship curriculum. The groups also aim to give students practical experience by helping them develop ventures and present business plans.
In another component to the weekend, MBA students from black colleges and universities were invited to participate in the Opportunity Funding Corporation venture challenge, a business plan competition that awarded over $37,000 in scholarship money.
"The student competition is giving our brightest MBA students and HBCUs [historically black colleges and universities] the opportunity to showcase their talents and education in a format that judges their abilities as entrepreneurs," said Ike Harris, chair of the Minority Entrepreneurship Education, Inc. "The competition is unique in its efforts to bring MBA students from HBCUs together for a competition that is certain to give them needed experience prior to beginning their business careers."
