Entrepreneurship Seminar – Kommende Foundation beneVolens

The entrepreneurship seminar of the Kommende-Stiftung beneVolens in North Rhine-Westphalia offers educational institutions and public organizations the opportunity to support secondary school students – especially those in lower secondary education – entrepreneurially through a practice-oriented project. Within continuously fundable measures, participants establish a fictitious company and go through all stages from planning and production to marketing and sales, as well as accounting. This modular approach not only strengthens professional skills in the areas of business start-up, corporate financing, and consulting but also promotes key qualifications such as creativity, communication skills, and teamwork. The seminar is designed as a special form of support and is aimed at schools that wish to provide their students with vibrant economic education and career orientation.

Since the pilot phase in 2016, the project has evolved: from the cooperation with La Mer Cosmetics, the “Black Rose Company” was established, which was awarded the IHK School Prize in 2017 and the LEO Prize in 2019. Meanwhile, various seminar formats – for example, on the production of herbal salts or the management of school cafeterias – are being implemented at several Dortmund schools. Thanks to the close integration of curriculum content and experiential learning, young people acquire practical knowledge about the economic system and develop entrepreneurial mindsets. At the same time, the foundation supports personality development by strengthening responsibility, self-organization, and social skills, thus optimally preparing young people for the labor market. There are no fixed deadlines for applications; submissions are possible at any time.