Governor’s School for Entrepreneurship Brings West Virginia Students From Idea to Action

HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Around 50 high school students from across West Virginia spent 10 days this summer doing something Marshall University President Brad Smith had challenged them to consider before they ever arrived on campus: looking at problems around them and thinking about how they could solve them.

“If you've ever looked at a problem and thought, ‘Someone needs to fix that.’ Well, guess what? That's entrepreneurship,” Smith said in a recruitment video for the 2026 West Virginia Governor’s School of Entrepreneurship.

The program brought high school sophomores, juniors and seniors from across the state to Marshall University’s iCenter from July 17 through July 26 for an immersive experience focused on innovation, real world problem solving and what it takes to develop a startup. Students stayed on Marshall’s campus throughout the 10 day program.

Smith, who previously served as CEO of Intuit before becoming president of Marshall University, framed entrepreneurship for students as something broader than simply starting a company.

“It’s about seeing what could be better, imagining the solution, and having the courage to go for it,” Smith said.

That philosophy became the foundation for much of what students experienced during the program.

Rather than requiring participants to arrive with an existing company or polished business plan, the Governor’s School for Entrepreneurship focused on teaching students how entrepreneurs approach problems.

Students learned design thinking, worked collaboratively, developed and refined ideas and received guidance from faculty, coaches, entrepreneurs and other mentors.

Throughout the program, students worked to identify real problems, better understand potential customers, develop possible solutions and test their ideas. They also explored technologies including generative artificial intelligence and 3D printing as tools that can help entrepreneurs develop and prototype products.

Students were also introduced to resources available if they decide to continue pursuing entrepreneurship after leaving the program.

According to West Virginia BusinessLink, Lesli Taylor with the West Virginia Secretary of State’s Office of Entrepreneurship joined Julia Moran and Leah Bowes with the West Virginia Small Business Development Center for a workshop with participants.

The workshop highlighted the range of resources available to entrepreneurs across West Virginia, regardless of their age or where they are in the process of developing a business.

That connection gives the program another purpose beyond the 10 days students spend at Marshall.

A student who discovers an idea during the program does not necessarily have to stop when the summer ends. West Virginia has organizations and resources designed to help entrepreneurs develop ideas, navigate the startup process and grow businesses.

Students also had opportunities to see entrepreneurship and manufacturing outside of the classroom.

Participants visited Blenko Glass Company and the Marshall Advanced Manufacturing Center as part of the experience.

At Blenko, students were able to see firsthand how one of West Virginia’s best known companies continues to manufacture products and build a recognizable brand from its home in Milton.

The program eventually moved students from identifying problems to presenting solutions.

The Governor’s School for Entrepreneurship concluded with students pitching the business concepts they had developed, giving participants an opportunity to combine communication and presentation skills with the ideas they had spent the previous days researching, testing and refining.

The Governor’s School for Entrepreneurship was established in 2016 and is part of the larger Governor’s Schools of West Virginia program administered by the West Virginia Department of Education.

For students, however, one of the biggest takeaways may be that entrepreneurship does not have to begin with already knowing how to start a business.

It can begin by noticing a problem.

That was the message Smith gave students as Marshall recruited the 2026 class.

“You don't have to wait to get started,” Smith said.

For around 50 West Virginia students this summer, the Governor’s School for Entrepreneurship gave them a place to start.

See more from the 2026 Governor’s School for Entrepreneurship in the photo gallery below.

Photos courtesy of Governor’s Schools of West Virginia.