A Brief Interpretative History of the
United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE)

Max S. Wortman, Jr., Historian, USASBE*

Iowa State University and USASBE Central Office

The first predecessor organization of USASBE was the National Council for Small Business Management Development (NCSBMD) in 1955. Its purpose was to provide an integrated gathering point for persons involved in helping small businesses evolve and develop in the United States. Wilfred White, Wendell Metcalf, and Grant Moon were among some of the original founders of the organization. The organization was founded almost synonymously with the Small Business Administration of the U.S. federal government. Later, Canadian members were added to the rolls.

Annual program meetings were held continuously from the first year. Bids for the annual meeting were taken and were selected at academic institutions. These meetings were held on campuses until 1981-1982. The last meeting on a campus was held in 1981 at Baylor University in Waco, Texas. Since that time, annual meetings have been held in hotels and conference centers nationally and internationally.

The Journal of Small Business Management Development was founded immediately after the NCSBMD was founded. In 1962, the Journal was published quarterly at the University of Iowa under the editorship of Clifford Baumback. At that time, it was sixteen pages long.

During the mid-1970s, the NCSBMD began to run into financial difficulties with the Journal. As a result, West Virginia University agreed to become a part-owner of the Journal and to provide a continuing Managing Editor for it. It's name became the Journal of Small Business Management At the present time, this co-relationship still exists in 2003.

During the late 1970s, the Canadian members began to feel that the organization should be changed because the NCSBMD was not a national organization, but was indeed an international organization. Therefore, the name of the organization was changed to the International Council for Small Business in 1978-1979. The first affiliate of the ICSB was the Canadian affiliate in 1979.

In 1981, the U.S. affiliate was founded and was named the U.S. Affiliate of the ICSB, the name was shortly changed to the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship (USASBE). The first president of the U.S. affiliate was Gerald Hills, who was a member of the faculty at the University of Tennessee (Knoxville). At the same time, Gerald Hills was also the President of the ICSB (the only person to hold both presidential positions simultaneously). Initially, the organizational structure was patterned after the structure of the parent organization (ICSB).

The University of Georgia Small Business Development Center became the first headquarters of USASBE. The second headquarters was at Kennesaw College in Marietta, Georgia. In 1989 the third and present headquarters was located at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, with Joan Gillman as the Executive Director.

Over the years, the following persons have served as president of USASBE:

1981-1982 Gerald Hills - University of Tennessee. Now at the University of Illinois. Founding Chair.
1982-1983 Gerald Hills
1983-1984 Thomas Dandridge - State University of New York, Albany
1984-1985 Harold Welsch - DePaul University
1985-1986 Alvin Star - University of Illinois
1986-1987 Max Wortman - University of Tennessee; Iowa State University Deceased.
1987-1988 Joseph Latona - University of Akron. Now retired.
1988-1989 Alan Filley - University of Wisconsin. Deceased.
1989-1990 Eugene Gomolka - University of Dayton. Deceased.
1990-1991 Catherine Ashmore - Ohio State University
1991-1992 William Ward - Susquehanna University
1992-1993 Fred Keisner - Loyola Marymount University
1993-1994 Donald F. Kuratko - Ball State University
1994-1995 Ray Bagby - Baylor University
1996 Dale Meyer - University of Colorado
1997 V.K. Unni - California State University-Bakersfield. Now at Bryant College.
1998 Charles W. Hofer - University of Georgia
1999 Lynn Neeley - Northern Illinois University
2000 Scott Kunkel - University San Diego
2001 Joan Winn - University of Denver
2002 George Solomon - The George Washington University
2003 Frank Hoy - University of Texas-El Paso
2004 Charles Matthews - University of Cincinnati 
2005 Dianne Welsh - Welsh Int'l, Inc. & Family Business First Int'l, Inc.; University of Tampa

After the U.S. affiliate was founded, it became increasingly evident that the boards of the parent organization and the U.S. affiliate were dominated by U.S. citizens. In 1985, the ICSB began to become a truly international organization with the addition of significant persons from other countries on their Board. At this time, the ICSB established a strategic planning committee which began to lay out new goals and objectives for the international organization.
In 1984, Max Wortman chaired the Strategic Planning Committee of USASBE. The present structure of officers and divisions (although some of the divisions have changed their names) was founded. Over the years, the structure has changed to reflect the challenges facing the organization. In the same year, he chaired the first biennial program which was held in Orlando with 82 full paid participants. Two years later, the first annual program was held in Milwaukee.

During the period from 1990-1995, the membership of USASBE began to decline. Part of the decline appeared to be due to competing organizations and programs such as the Entrepreneurship Division, Academy of Management; the Babson College Annual Conference; the Small Business Directors' Association; the Family Firm Institute and other competing conferences on a one-time basis.

In 1997 USASBE received it's first grant from the Coleman Foundation to fund the IntEnt 97 in Monterey, California. A grant was written to the Foundation by Joyce Brockaus, Lynn Neeley, and Joan Gillman to fund the conference and give scholarships to new members in USASBE to encourage attendance and to introduce them to the organization. It was the beginning of tremendous growth for the organization.

As USASBE grew, other organizations began to participate and support USASBE. The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, The John E. and Jeannie T. Hughes Foundation and The Edward Lowe Foundation have been playing increasingly important roles in the conference and organization. In 2002 and 2003, with the generous help of the Coleman Foundation organization grant, USASBE redesigned the web site and increased the services for the membership. All proceedings since 2001 are searchable, white papers are available on the site and a bibliography and approximately 100 syllabi will be available soon.