Jim Moran School of Entrepreneurship new director

http://www.tallahassee.com/story/news/2016/01/26/fsu-taps-susan-fiorito-lead-jim-moran-school-entrpreneurship/79356768/


"Florida State University took the next step in establishing the groundbreaking Jim Moran School of Entrepreneurship Tuesday with its appointment of Susan Fiorito as founding director.
Fiorito, 64, brings an extensive background in higher education and hands-on retail experience to the position. She serves as chair of the Department of Entrepreneurship, Strategy and Information Systems in FSU’s College of Business. She also serves as president of the FSU Faculty Senate, which gives her a seat on FSU’s board of trustees.
“Dr. Fiorito’s academic credentials and classroom acumen combine with her business successes to make her a natural fit for this critically important role,” said Sally McRorie, provost and executive vice president for academic affairs, who appointed Fiorito. “She knows how to get things done and done well. We are very pleased that she will serve as founding director of the school that will help transform FSU into the foremost entrepreneurial university in the nation.”
In December, Florida State made national headlines when President President John Thrasher announced a $100 million donation from Jan Moran and The Jim Moran Foundation.
The donation is the largest in FSU's history and is believed to be the largest single contribution to Florida's public higher education system. It doubled last year’s $50 million donation to the University of Florida by the Herbert and Nicole Wertheim Family Foundation.
The $100 million donation will be used to create the Jim Moran School of Entrepreneurship in downtown Tallahassee, which FSU expects to launch on Aug. 8, 2018, marking the late Jim Moran's 100th birthday.
Thrasher explained that $80 million of the $100 million donation is being pledged over 20 years, yielding FSU $4.4 million a year. The remaining $20 million is bequeathed to FSU in Jan Moran's will.
The Jim Moran School of Entrepreneurship will be separate from FSU’s College of Business and will be housed at a downtown Tallahassee location FSU expects to identify soon.
Fiorito said the school will allow FSU “to put in place an inter-disciplinary program that is truly university-wide, as we are drawing on entrepreneurs throughout the campus, every college.”
FSU has 28 entrepreneurs-in-residence on campus in 12 of 16 colleges, including the arts, health, engineering, business and in STEM-related areas. Entrepreneurs affiliated with FSU also provide workshops, training sessions and other resources to businesses around the state, free of charge.
Those experts will teach part-time in the new school while continuing to teach in their respective colleges.
The Jim Moran Institute, which focuses on outreach and training, also will benefit from the gift but operate separately under Executive Director Randy Blass.
“I’m very excited,” said Fiorito, who has been the Jim Moran Professor and chair of the Department of Entrepreneurship, Strategy and Information Systems in the College of Business since April 2014.
Fiorito earned her bachelor’s degree in home economics education from FSU in 1973. She earned a master’s degree in administration and supervision of secondary schools from Barry University in 1976 and her doctorate in merchandising from Oklahoma State University in 1984.
She began her teaching career at FSU as an adjunct professor in 1990.
With the school opening in 2018, Fiorito’s work begins now in creating the new school, which includes completing the necessary paperwork to establish the school and get acceptance from trustees and the Board of Governors; meeting with deans of each college to help determine curriculum and what role those colleges will have in the new school and hiring staff and professors.
The school will offer a bachelor’s of arts or science, in entrepreneurship and begin accepting juniors for fall 2017 enrollment.
Fiorito said the goal is to accept 100 students initially as the school is up and running in 2018.
Fiorito’s background includes experience as a hands-on entrepreneur as she owned four clothing boutiques selling jeans, leather and jewelry in Atlanta between 1976-1980. She taught high-school home economics during the day and handled the retail operations at night.
After leaving Atlanta, she taught at Florida International University, earned her doctorate at Oklahoma State, and moved to Iowa, where she taught at University of Iowa for eight years.
The experience of creating her own businesses from scratch has helped give her perspective in the importance of bringing the spirit of entrepreneurship to the academic setting.
“It was many, many years ago but some things don’t change,” she said. “That kind of passion for wanting to be your own boss. I can relate to students who have that same passion. It was a great learning experience.”
Fiorito said she’s “flattered and very honored” to have the trust of Thrasher and McRorie in leading what FSU describes as the nation’s largest interdisciplinary, degree-granting school of entrepreneurship.
“I’m going to work as hard as I can to do the best job I can for Mrs. Moran, The Jim Moran Foundation and FSU,” she said.
Fiorito is married to Jack Fiorito who chairs the management department in the College of Business."