Drake expands business boot camp for women

Drake University and Ascent, a not-for-profit organization that is working to grow the number of women-owned businesses, are working to expand Drake's Startup Boot Camp for Women.

The multicity class will be held June 6 and 7 and June 20 and 21 at Drake University in Des Moines and Mount Mercy University CRST International Graduate Center in Cedar Rapids.

'We want women who have an idea for a business or who think they would like to start a business to spend a couple of days with us,” said Lydia Brown, Ascent CEO.

Drake University professor Tom Swartwood developed the program specifically for women to help move them from the thinking stage to the doing stage.

We have the mentors with the knowledge to help any woman explore and pursue her entrepreneurial dreams,” Swartwood said. 'And we really engage the power of networking through having participants interact with their cohort, previous participants, and mentors.”

Brown said that nationally, the number of women-owned businesses has increased by 59 percent in the past five years. But here in Iowa, there was only a 23 percent increase.

'It's clearly an economic opportunity,” she said. 'More efforts like this are needed to ignite women in business leadership throughout the state and build a more comprehensive, innovative economy.”

To register for the Iowa Startup Business Boot Camp for Women visit www.ascentiowa.org.