Eric W. Liguori [1] (born July 6, 1981) is an American entrepreneurship expert on faculty in the Sykes College of Business at The University of Tampa. Liguori is best known for his book, “The Startup Student” [2], and for his work building and supporting entrepreneurship education programs [3] [4] [5] [6] and ecosystems around the nation. Liguori is a regular contributor and/or commentator on small business and entrepreneurship issues. He's been quoted in Forbes [7], Digiday [8], Northwest Herald [9], and The Business Journal [10] to name a few.
Raised in Clearwater, Florida, Liguori received his Bachelor of Business Administration in 2002 from Florida State University, his MBA in 2004 from the University of South Florida, and his PhD in Entrepreneurship from Louisiana State University in 2012 under the supervision of Dr. K. Mark Weaver. Liguori taught at Fresno State University from 2011-2014 where he also served as Assistant Director of the Lyles Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship and on the Board of 59 Days of Code , a nonprofit technology organization. Presently Liguori is on faculty in the Sykes College of Business at The University of Tampa. He also co-directs the Entrepreneurship Education Project and serves on the board of the U.S. Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship.
In 2014 Liguori was awarded the “Entrepreneurship Education Excellence” Award from the Lyles Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship for his “substantial contribution to the education of student entrepreneurs.” Then, in 2015, his research on experiential entrepreneurship education won him a "Distinguished Research Award" from the Academy of Entrepreneurship in 2015. He has several other research accolades to his credit as well, including best paper awards from the Southern Management Association and ABEAI International.