By Randall Turk
The Norman Transcript

The bricks and mortar have not been laid and the funds have not been raised, but those elements are secondary to the most critical asset- human capital-already in place.

This fall, a new curriculum is being launched at the University of Oklahoma. The outcome could begin to reverse the "brain drain" Oklahoma academics have hated to acknowledge.

OU's Oklahoma Technology Center has formed the "University Center for the Creation of Economic Wealth," (CCEW), an informal think tank and entrepreneurial proving ground designed to spin off high tech companies and develop the environment to keep them in Oklahoma. The principal CCEW mission is to "nurture, support, develop and retain top talent" and produce intellectual property that will operate in Oklahoma and boost the state economy.

Daniel Pullin, an entrepreneur with a record of creating technical companies, has been recruited as CCEW executive director.

The program is being initiated by W. Arthur "Skip" Porter, OU vice president for technology development. "From the OU perspective, we've got many wonderful, bright, interested people on campus," Porter said Friday. Many gifted students already well schooled in technical disciplines are "anxious to learn how to convert their ideas to wealth. We [at ou] already have a growing portfolio of ideas. We need to bring to bear as much talent as we can to develop them."

In Porter's six years at the helm, the Office of Technology Development (OTD) has already helped field 25 successful companies based on research developed at OU. What is needed, Porter believes, is the "nucleus," a university-based wellspring of ideas to keep them here.

Porter, who served for five years as Gov. Frank Keating's Secretary of Science and Technology, said the questions he encountered constantly was why the steady exodus of Oklahoma's college and university graduates. "The three things we have to do is find the brightest," he said. "We have to attract them. OU does that. And we must retain them. This is what we'll do."

Eventually, the CCEW will be centered at an "entrepreneurial village" providing an environment for ideas to grow and materialize, Porter said. His concept of the village includes a business startup incubator, residence for mentors, offices for the CCEW and the OTD and a "coffee shop" or restaurant facility where students and mentors can meet at any time of the day or night to chew over their ideas.

Porter said all elements of the village, at a site yet to be determined, would be in walking distance. He said the university will need to raise about $50 million, half of that for endowments and the rest for initial capitalization. "The timing would be to break ground three years from now and get the village built in another three," he said.

Students are already being reviewed for the fall program. The first group of interns (the "guinea pig class") of about 10 students begins this fall. The class will grow to about 25 the following year, Porter said. Interns will receive step ends of $750 to $1,200 and three credit hours to participate. Applications are being accepted on the OTD Web site, www.otd.ou.edu.

Efforts are also under way to recruit the other half of the human capital-mentors-to lend their experience and practical knowledge to helping students develop as entrepreneurs. One of an expected five or six mentors already has consented to participate this fall. The first will be from a group of world renowned business leaders, some Porter has served with on corporate boards.

"Mentors in residence and the internship program brings together the best of both worlds," Porter said. "Our mentors will be successful entrepreneurs who know how the game is played. We couldn't hire that energy and intellect."

What attracts mentors is the opportunity to "work with the brightest and best in the nation," Porter said. "Being able to share life with youth could be a lot of fun." Keeping their mental equipment in shape could be another factor motivating mentors, he said.

Porter's message to mentors: "Are you between startup companies? We have a deal for you. Retired? Want to use your mind again? We have a deal for you."

Porter, from Houston, said a group of retired executive golfers who formed a group there known as "The Gray Fox Club" regularly invites young entrepreneurs to breakfast with them at a country club. A long list of young people sign up for the opportunity to listen to the voice of experience, he said.

The qualities of entrepreneurship are as old as business enterprise itself. Courses to develop entrepreneurs (or people with the guts to convert challenging new ideas into businesses) have grown like a prairie fire in the halls of academia.

A recent survey by the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation found 1,992 colleges and universities currently offer at least one course in entrepreneurship, up from 300 in the 1984-85 school year.

While Porter's model does include some coursework, he is the first to acknowledge entrepreneurs develop from a spark already inside them. "We will be trying to develop entrepreneurs, not train them," he said.

As far as grading the student interns, Porter said he will rely on a technique he regularly uses in the classroom. "I tell students everybody gets an 'A' today. If you get an 'F'. you've earned it." Students will also undergo continuous evaluations by their peers and project teams. They will be graded on oral and written presentations and meet weekly as a class to learn basic principles required for real world business.

A prime example of Porter's village concept is the new engineering practice facility rising on the OU research campus. "It was an idea five years ago and now it's coming out of the ground," he said. Now is the perfect time to begin, he believes.

"The state Centennial is a great way to roll this out. Oklahoma began its first century with the land runs. We're beginning the second century with a knowledge run."

What should happen, Porter said, is the creation of new industries in Oklahoma. "Students will be here, take positions in startup companies and operate them here. We will define for Oklahoma what the Silicon Valley did for California. This is an efficient way to go from ideas to wealth.

"I can see it. I can feel it."