BOONE— Eric Christianson Cornwell of Kilmarnock, Va., has received the inaugural Student Entrepreneur of the Year Award from Appalachian State University’s Center for Entrepreneurship. Cornwell is a sophomore management major with a concentration in entrepreneurship.

The $2,500 award was presented during the 2009 Young Entrepreneurs Symposium held on campus. It is presented annually to students who have started businesses, on-campus programming, new clubs and organizations, or community service.

For more information about the award and the Center for Entrepreneurship, contact Julia Rowland at rowlandja@appstate.edu or 262-8325 or Bryan Toney at toneybc@appstate.edu or 262-6196.

Eric Christianson Cornwell, left, has received the Student Entrepreneur of the Year Scholarship at Appalachian State University. He is pictured with Bryan Toney, director of Appalachian’s Center for Entrepreneurship.

Cornwell started a window tinting business while a sophomore in high school. Within a couple years, he began tinting commercial and residential properties. His company now tints windows across the East Coast.
To balance a slowdown in business during winter months, Cornwell purchased equipment from a computer graphics shop that was going out of business and launched a graphics company that produced a variety of graphics for billboards, vehicles signs and stickers.

In addition, he become a semi-pro dirt bike rider and became an Amsoil dealer. Amsoil distributes synthetic motor oil.  When a friend was injured in a car accident, Cornwell helped with the family’s landscaping business.

“This individual is the most hardworking entrepreneur that I have come across in my life,” wrote one nominator.

Nine other students were nominated for the award, representing a range of academic disciplines.

They are:
Jay Kramer, a senior double majoring in interdisciplinary studies with a concentration in music, and management with a concentration in entrepreneurship.  He is owner of High Country Booking, LLC; president of Split Rail Records, a student recording label based in Appalachian’s Hayes School of Music; vice president of the Association of Student Entrepreneurs; and chairman of APPs Club Shows on campus. He was the local band organizer for the student-run business Yellowdog Productions, which produced the Music on the Mountain festival last summer.

Jesse Kellogg, a junior hospitality and tourism major. He is co-owner of Koncepts Hookah LLC, a hookah lounge is located on the corner of King Street and Water Street which will open in Boone this spring.  A hookah is a type of pipe used in the Middle East to smoke tobacco.

Sarah Green, a senior majoring in accounting and international business. She founded Appalachian’s AIESEC Chapter, a global student organization that promotes cultural understanding while building student leadership skills. She also founded the Global Opportunities Conference, which is now an annual event. Green will travel to Africa this summer to help teach social entrepreneurship in Uganda.

Jason Hunter McBride, a freshman who plans to major in management with a concentration in entrepreneurship.  McBride was the president of his high school’s DECA organization. DECA is an international association of high school and college students studying marketing, management and entrepreneurship in business, finance, hospitality and marketing sales and service. He has attended development conferences across the state and internationally.  He started a social networking business in November 2008.

Joel Gillie, a freshman who will major in marketing. He began dreaming of owning his own business at the age of 15. In high school, he founded Joel Gillie Productions, a mobile DJ and entertainment company, and has booked his services throughout much of the state.

Richard Bryan Holbrook, a junior majoring in management and marketing.  Holbrook founded the ASU Club baseball team as a freshman and started his own baseball coaching business in 2008.

James Posedel, a sophomore psychology major.  He started a piano lesson business just after high school.  In three years, his business has grown from just two students to 10 students a week. The students range from four to 63 years old.

Kelly Penick, a sophomore hospitality and tourism management major. Penick founded her first company while a freshman at Appalachian.  She opened the spa All About Beauty the beginning of her sophomore year. Penick also was president of the Association of Student Entrepreneurs club while a freshman, and has won numerous local, state-wide, and national awards for her dedication to her entrepreneurial endeavors.

Rio Tazewell is a junior environmental policy and planning major.  In high school, he secured grant funding to assemble a biodiesel processor, which he donated back to his school.  He traveled to Nicaragua to assist with the installation of a turbine generator to provide irrigation for an organic coffee farm.  He has continued his work at Appalachian as the public relations chair for the ASU Renewable Energy Initiative and public relations officer for the ASU Sustainable Energy Society. He has worked to bring awareness of environmental issues and renewable energy to  campus by organizing voting campaigns and serving as the N.C. coordinator for PowerShift 2009.

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