Welcome to a new pod series from Franklin College: A small, private, liberal arts school in the heart of America’s heartland, in this in-between world of being just 20 minutes from Indianapolis, one of the country’s 25 largest cities, and what you may lovingly refer to as the middle of nowhere.

Franklin is the second-largest town or city in Indiana’s eleventh-largest county. We’re the county seat — once a very important distinction in Indiana culture — but the nearby city of Greenwood has exploded in population, doubling in size over the last 20 years to more than 65,000 residents. Franklin still dwarfs the other towns in our area — it’s nearly twice the size of Whiteland, New Whiteland, Trafalgar, Princes Lakes, and Edinburgh combined. Include the up-and-coming Bargersville, which is situated nicely between Franklin and Greenwood along the US highway, and only then does the rest of the county overtake Franklin’s population.

Further south of Franklin and Johnson County lies mostly cornfields. The population of the wedge of the state to the south and east from Johnson County is approximately 40% smaller than lives in just Marion County, where Indianapolis is found. The population density in many of those counties is just 30 or 40 people per square mile.

So we’re in an interesting spot: Tucked neatly between the biggest city in the state — and arguably one of the most interesting and dynamic cities in the Midwest — and… nothing.

Places like this are interesting. Rural America, and, I’d argue, in particular the rural parts closest to Appalachia, are often written off as backward, small-minded, and uneducated or just dumb. Hillbillies. And while literally every place in the world has its share of interesting personalities, that characterization is flat out wrong. Rural America is where you find some of the most creative, resilient, resourceful, and, yes, compassionate people in our great country. And I want you to hear their stories.

Starting with this spring semester, the students in my 100-level entrepreneurship class will find people in small towns who have started a business and record a short podcast with them. I’ve asked the students to ask about the founder’s background, why they decided to start a business, what it’s been like to start a new venture in a small town or far-flung area.

I’m not in the room for these conversations, and will be publishing the recordings just as they are — audio hiccups and all.

The series is called Main Street Moxie, a nod to both the small towns we’ll be exploring and the gumption and gusto it takes to start something new.

I love small towns; I love the people who grab on to the wild idea of entrepreneurship; and I hope that through this series you’ll fall in love with them too. And maybe find a kindred spirit or two along the way.

These recordings are made possible by the Engaged Learning team at Franklin College, which includes the offices of career and professional development, global education, the Center for Tech Innovation, and the Kite Shop, our little entrepreneurship program. You can learn more about these programs at FranklinCollege.edu, at theKiteShopFC.com, and you can send ideas, feedback, and questions to thekiteshop@franklincollege.edu.

Thank you for listening. I hope you’ll stick with us, share these stories with your friends and neighbors, and show your support for both the founders and businesses you hear from and the students behind those conversations.

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Jeremy is the director of professional development and is an instructor of business at Franklin College. The views expressed in this recording and these notes are those of the author only and should not be attributed to Franklin College.