READING, Pa. — The Flemming Creativity, Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (CEED) Center, located within the Penn State Berks Gaige Technology and Business Innovation Building, will hold its biannual Creativity and Entrepreneurship Workshop for Reading School District students enrolled in the Penn State Educational Partnership Program (PEPP) on Monday, Nov. 11. The goal of the program is to explore the concepts of creative thinking and entrepreneurship.

“Creativity is a fundamental part of the youth’s entrepreneurial mindset,” explained Sadan Kulturel-Konak, professor of management information systems and director of the Flemming CEED Center.

During the workshop, students will reflect on their passions and practice generating new ideas. Students will then collectively work on a series of creative problem-solving activities and find innovative solutions for problems in their communities. 

Kulturel-Konak and Abdullah Konak, professor of information sciences and technology, are faculty advisers and workshop co-coordinators. Students in the Entrepreneurship Student Club will assist with problem-solving activities.

Collaborating with PEPP, the Flemming CEED Center has been organizing this workshop every semester since spring 2013.  

“Students show tremendous interest in this workshop, and we are always amazed with how much they can learn and apply within a day,” said Kulturel-Konak. “The feedback obtained from the participants shows that the workshop is effective in teaching them how to develop and expand their entrepreneurial mindset through creativity and problem-solving activities.”