_____________________________________________________________________________________________ Small Business Institute® Research Review, Volume 35, 2008 61 USING ELECTRIC COOPERATIVES TO BUILD ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN RURAL AMERICA: AN INVESTIGATIVE CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK Kirk Heriot, Columbus State University Noel Campbell, University of Central Arkansas Jeffrey Shields, University of Southern Maine Abstract This paper proposes a new framework for rural entrepreneurship that builds upon the extant literature on rural entrepreneurship. We describe the current literature on entrepreneurship in rural America. We then develop a framework for rural entrepreneurship that can be adapted to fit the needs of rural community development efforts. We use an example of an electric cooperative in North Carolina that has taken an active role in entrepreneurial development to demonstrate how the framework applies to practice. We conclude by discussing the ramifications of this framework for researchers, public policy officials, government leaders, and individuals interested in rural entrepreneurship. INTRODUCTION Consider, if you will, the plight of an entrepreneur in the Appalachian Mountains, the plains of Nebraska or the Cascade Mountains in Washington, seeking to start a new business venture. The federal government actively attempts to assist new businesses and existing small businesses throughout the U.S. The best known programs include Small Business Development Centers (SBDC), Small Business Institute (SBI), Service Corp of Retired Executives (SCORE), and small business incubators (See Wortman, 1990a for a detailed list of other types of policies and programs). However, entrepreneurs in rural America face a combination of challenges trying to obtain assistance either due to a lack of programs in their region or reductions in federal funding for these programs. Van Horn and Harvey point out that despite the efforts of the SBA and other organizations, “entrepreneurial firms ... in rural areas face a host of difficulties related to their external and internal environment. They are small and isolated. The people and information base to provide expert support for critical decisions and functions do not exist internally or externally in the rural location” (Van Horn and Harvey, pg. 157-158, 1998). For example, the SBA has suffered cutbacks in many programs, such as the elimination of the Small Business Institute program, as well as decreases in funding for their well known SBDC program. This predicament means the rural small business must seek assistance from a SBDC that may be geographically distant, unaffordable due to travel time and distance, or simply unavailable. Thus, entrepreneurs in these remote areas are left with few options for getting help to start a business (we define an entrepreneur as anyone that starts a business). Despite advances in entrepreneurship in the United States, stimulating business growth in rural areas continues to be a challenge. In particular, we lack a consistent model or framework for entrepreneurship in rural areas. Wortman (1990a) addressed this difficulty with his concept of rural economic development zones (REDZs). Even so, Wortman laments that “practically