Common Read
About Common Read
The Common Read is a program designed to engage North Iowa Area Community College, its students, staff, faculty and community members, in a unified intellectual activity. For first-year students it introduces them to academic expectations, respectful discourse, and community building. The Common Read is supported by the Performing Arts and Leadership Series as well as the NIACC Foundation, which sponsors a keynote address by the author of the Common Read, or someone closely associated with the book. First-year students will be asked to read the book as part of their Composition One requirements. The Common Read book is available through the NIACC Bookstore.
This program is supported by the Academic Affairs board of the institution, and a host of individual faculty and staff members on the Common Read Committee
If you have any questions, please contact us at Common.Read@niacc.edu
This Years Common Read
Book Description
Who Owns the Ice House? Eight Life Lessons From an Unlikely Entrepreneur
“Long before the word ‘entrepreneur’ became popular, the concept still existed.”
In the late 1950s, Glen Allan, Mississippi was a poor cotton community. For many, it was a time and place where opportunities were limited by social and legal constraints that were beyond their control. It was a time and place where few dared to dream. For most, the work was in the fields where the sun was hot, the days were long and the wages were low. It was an accepted way of life that had been passed down for generations and, from the time young Clifton Taulbert could walk, he too was expected to climb aboard Mr. Walter’s field truck and find his place among his peers. Yet one man made a difference – an unlikely entrepreneur who defied convention and dared to dream. That man was Clifton’s Uncle Cleve.
Based on his own life experience, Pulitzer nominee Clifton Taulbert has teamed up with entrepreneurial thought leader Gary Schoeniger to create Who Owns the Ice House? – a powerful and compelling story that captures the essence of an entrepreneurial mindset and the unlimited opportunities it can provide. Drawing on the entrepreneurial life lessons he gained from his Uncle Cleve, Who Owns the Ice House? chronicles Taulbert’s journey from his life in the Mississippi Delta at the height of legal segregation to being recognized by Time Magazine as “one of our nation’s most outstanding emerging entrepreneurs.” While Taulbert describes the life-changing influence of his Uncle Cleve, Schoeniger captures the entrepreneurial life lessons, their timeless application and the unlimited opportunities they can provide.
Who Owns The Ice House? delivers an important message, one that reaches into the past to remind us of the timeless and universal principles that can empower anyone to succeed.
Author Biography
Clifton Taulbert
According to Clifton L. Taulbert, noted author and entrepreneur businessman, he could have failed had he not encountered community builders and entrepreneurial thinkers early on in his life. Taulbert was born on the Mississippi Delta during the era of legal segregation where he completed his secondary education. Though opportunities were few and barriers were plentiful, Taulbert managed to dream of being successful, not knowing the shape that success would take. Today Taulbert is the President and CEO of the Freemount Corporation (a human capital development company) serving clients nationally and internationally-Fortune 500 Companies, small businesses, federal agencies, professional organizations, community colleges and K-12 leadership. Additionally, entrepreneur Taulbert is the President and CEO of Roots Java Coffee-an African-American owned national coffee brand, importing coffee from Africa. To pass his life lessons along, Taulbert shares his entrepreneurial journey with others as a Thrive15.com mentor.
Following high school graduation and a short banking career in Saint Louis, Taulbert enlisted in the United States Air force. After successfully serving in the 89th Presidential Wing of the United States Air Force in the late 1960s, Taulbert was honorably discharged and continued his college education, graduating from Oral Roberts University and the Southwest Graduate School of Banking at Southern Methodist University. During those years, Taulbert was quietly writing. His first book Once Upon A Time When We Were Colored became a national best seller, a major motion picture and a requested gift for Nelson Mandela upon his release from prison. Eight Habits of the Heart, one of Taulbert’s thirteen books garnered him an invitation by former Supreme Court Justice, Sandra day O’Connor to address members of the court and their invited guests. Taulbert’s literary work ignited the journey that has taken him throughout the world. As a recognized thought leader on the issues of community, Taulbert has lectured at Harvard University Principals Center and the United States Air Force Academy.
Gary Schoeniger
Gary Schoeniger, has emerged as an internationally recognized thought leader in the field of entrepreneurial mindset education. As the founder of the Entrepreneurial Learning Initiative, Schoeniger has influenced a broad audience from higher education and economic development organizations to government, corporate and non-profit clients worldwide including the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, the Cisco Entrepreneur Institute and the U.S. State Department. Schoeniger also led the development of the Ice House Entrepreneurship Program, which has been recognized by the Kauffman Foundation as “redefining entrepreneurship education in classrooms and communities around the world”. With his focus on the entrepreneurial mindset, Schoeniger has presented numerous keynotes, workshops and training programs throughout the US and abroad. Recent engagements include the Global Entrepreneurship Congress in Rio de Janeiro and Moscow, as well as speaking and training programs in Athens, London, Bogota, Buenos Aires, Mexico City, Sofia, Santiago, Aberdeen, Nicosia, Zagreb, Tbilisi and Baku. Schoeniger, along with Pulitzer nominee Clifton Taulbert, is also the co-author of Who Owns The Ice House: Eight Life Lessons From An Unlikely Entrepreneur, an international bestseller described as “required reading for humanity”.
Author Visit Information:
Both authors will be on the NIACC Campus at different times during the 2019-2020 academic year.
Gary Schoeniger on October 30, 2019
Clifton Taulbert on March 25, 2020.
More information on those visits will be available in the fall.