Florida State University’s newest school — the Jim Moran School of Entrepreneurship — will now become its newest college, the university announced Friday during its Board of Trustees meeting.
With the board’s unanimous approval of the name change, the Jim Moran College of Entrepreneurship becomes the nation’s first stand-alone college of entrepreneurship. In addition to elevating the college’s prestige and profile, the transition acknowledges that the college grants graduate degrees.
“Entrepreneurship is one of Florida State’s strategic goals and having the nation’s first stand-alone college of entrepreneurship signals our strong commitment to that goal,” said Sally McRorie, provost and executive vice president for Academic Affairs. “We are so thankful to Jan Moran and The Jim Moran Foundation for their generosity in helping us fulfill this vision.”
The green light from the BOT for the name change cements a series of successful votes by numerous university boards and councils, including the FSU Faculty Senate.
Founded with a $100 million gift from Jan Moran and The Jim Moran Foundation in December 2015, it’s been a period of rapid growth for the school-turned-college.
The school opened its doors in fall 2017 with a class of 80 students and watched its first graduates collect their degrees in spring 2019. There are now about 760 students, 25 faculty and 11 staff members.
The college, which offers three undergraduate majors (commercial, social and retail entrepreneurship), welcomed its first class of graduate students this fall in the new Master of Science degree program in Retail Entrepreneurship with a major in Textiles and Apparel Entrepreneurship. The addition of a graduate program allowed the school to begin the process of becoming a college.
Jim Moran Professor Susan Fiorito, the new college’s dean, was the school’s founding director and has led its transition to college status. Fiorito said the achievement couldn’t have happened without the hard work of many.
“So many people including faculty and staff have been involved to make this happen,” she said. “It started with Jim Moran’s entrepreneurial legacy and Jan Moran and The Jim Moran Foundation’s generous gift, Jan’s continued guidance and university leaders who believe in and facilitate our success.”
Fiorito added that Melvin Stith, emeritus dean of the College of Business, was instrumental in this accomplishment. During his tenure at FSU, Stith built a friendship with Jim and Jan Moran. That rapport led to numerous financial gifts, including $1 million in 1995 to establish the Jim Moran Institute for Global Entrepreneurship.
The Jim Moran College of Entrepreneurship is FSU’s 17th college, and the university’s first new college since the creation of Panama City’s College of Applied Studies in 2010.
For more information about the Jim Moran College of Entrepreneurship, visit https://jimmorancollege.fsu.edu/.
