SHARON, Pa. – JCL Development has partnered with Westminster College to launch a new civic entrepreneurship fellowship and is seeking to acquire Penn State University’s Shenango campus for potential use by the college.
JCL Development, operated by Jim Landino and his wife, Jen Krezeczowski, donated $500,000 to the New Wilmington college to establish the Economic Development Fellowship Program, which will be operated through the Westminster Entrepreneurship Center.
JCL’s relationship with Westminster “is probably the most exciting thing that we have going on,” Landino said during a phone interview.
Landino, whose company has redeveloped several downtown buildings, said his interest in launching the partnership with the college stemmed in part from wanting to get “young, energetic, entrepreneurial” individuals involved with the community. In addition, he is looking to fill the void that will be created when the Penn State Shenango campus closes its doors after the spring 2027 semester, which potentially could assist JCL with projects and establish an ecosystem that would help the community with its own projects, as well as prevent the continued drain of talent from the area.
“We’ve got to recruit these kids. We have got to get them excited about what we have going on so they can see a future here in our counties,” Landino said.
The fellowship will provide up to five students annually with a $5,000 stipend over two academic years, along with training in entrepreneurship and community-based economic development. Fellows will work on real-world projects, gaining hands-on experience while supporting revitalization efforts in Sharon, Mercer County, Lawrence County and the broader region.
“This fellowship is a game changer for both our students and the community,” Eric Gaber, senior director of the entrepreneurship center, said in the news release. “It provides students with meaningful, real-world experience while directly contributing to the revitalization of Sharon. They won’t just be learning about economic development – they’ll be doing it.”
The center already is engaged in several projects supporting Sharon-area organizations and small businesses, according to the release. These efforts are focused on strengthening the local economy, fostering innovation and enhancing the quality of life throughout the region. While many current initiatives are based in Sharon, the fellowship is designed to support projects and partnerships across multiple communities.
Separately, JCL is pursuing acquisition of the Penn State Shenango campus, Landino confirmed. He said he sees mixed-use opportunities for the space, including repurposing the Forker Lab for medical studies. Sharon Hall is “quite large” and would require subdividing. Some of the campus space could be attractive to Westminster, he added.
During a symposium over the weekend, students affiliated with the entrepreneurship center shared the results of their work on six projects during the past semester, said Lindsay Krezeczowski, director of marketing and business development at JCL.
Those projects included exploring possibilities for a grocery store downtown to serve apartments that JCL developed in recent years or a “general store type of location” to create a “nostalgic staple downtown shopping center” that potentially would attract visitors from outside the area to visit, she said. Students also explored prospects for a wine bar, what businesses might be complementary to the ones already in Sharon and applied research and analysis to operations at Specialty Strip & Oscillating Inc. in Masury, Ohio, which JCL recently entered into a strategic equity partnership with.
“That will just be an ongoing thing now that we’re part of this,” Krezeczowski said. The fellowship program is each semester. Even over the summertime, students can kind of pick up where the last groups left off, and accommodate changes and see how we can apply different scenarios to real-world economic development projects.”
At some point, students will work on projects through Mercer and Lawrence counties, Landino said.
Sara McCauley, a real estate agent with Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices in Hermitage who attended Westminster, attended the symposium. She expressed enthusiasm for the program, which she wished had been in place when she was a student. It connects students to projects and activities they might otherwise be unaware of and provides them opportunities to work on real-world projects.
In addition, it provides the opportunity to connect with Landino and other entrepreneurs to learn from and potentially connect with professionally, she said.
“It’s just planting a great seed,” she added. “It goes far beyond education – it’s connection and mentorship.”
Pictured at top: The Westminster Entrepreneurship Center.