New campus initiative fosters creative problem-solving, innovative thought among students

As part of Roanoke’s strategic initiative to cultivate a campus environment that fosters professional growth and encourages the pursuit of character, Roanoke has hired Logan Hammerschmitt as its new director of co-curricular innovation and creativity. 

In the short time he’s been at Roanoke, Hammerschmitt has already hit the ground running. He launched Leaders in Innovative Thought (LIT), an initiative designed to provide support to students with creative curiosity and a desire to create something of value in the world, whether that be through creating a business, running a nonprofit or being an innovative employee at an existing company.  

Hammerschmitt holds a degree in entrepreneurship from Grove City College. Before landing at Roanoke, he held a position at his alma mater as campus director for the Center for Entrepreneurship + Innovation, where he built events, programs and competitions that encouraged students to tackle big problems and pursue their dreams.  

LIT recently kicked off with the pilot event for its Make-an-Impact Monday (MIM) series. During these events, Hammerschmitt invites a community leader to speak to students about their profession. The guest speaker also presents a real challenge they’re facing in their work and encourages the students to brainstorm creative solutions to that problem.  

The goal of MIM is to give students the space to think outside the box and exercise their creative problem-solving skills while also giving the guest speaker fresh, viable solutions to address their problem. Rebecca Marsh ’21, economic development specialist for the City of Salem and guest for the first MIM event, opened the floor for ideas on how the city can attract more visitors to the region. She left the discussion with a few ideas that could be implemented, Hammerschmitt said. 

Another LIT event series that Hammerschmitt plans to introduce is Try Something Tuesday, which will give students the opportunity to try something new. These will likely be activities they have never considered doing, like building a guitar. Learning in this manner can be a great way to fuel creativity, he said.  

“As students are learning new things, they’re making connections in their brain between what they’re doing right then and the things that they have done previously, maybe without even realizing it,” he said. “They might suddenly have that light bulb moment of, ‘If I could just take this and apply it to something I already do, or something I know about, I could create something entirely new.’” 

LIT events are open to students of all majors, and Hammerschmitt has more planned for the future, including an elevator pitch competition this fall. He sees the LIT initiative as a way to bring different campus constituencies together and encourage students to participate in other activities and events across campus.  

This new initiative complements other resources and opportunities available to entrepreneurial-minded students at Roanoke, including the Center for Leadership and Entrepreneurial Innovation (CLEI). Through CLEI's programs, students learn key skills such as collaborative teamwork, strategic planning, creative problem solving, organizational leadership and market analysis through real-world experiences.  

“I want to make sure that we're a campus of collaboration and that we all work together for the benefit of our students,” Hammerschmitt said. 

Hammerschmitt’s door is always open to students who want to run ideas by him. In his new role, he will support and guide students through their entrepreneurial and creative endeavors. His mission is to encourage students to use their unique gifts and perspectives to do something that benefits themselves and the community around them, he said. He is especially interested in helping students see how they can apply what they’re learning in school to a non-traditional path for their major.    

“In today’s job market, being resilient—being able to fail and learn from those failures—is important,” he said. “We want students to be able to say, ‘Okay, this didn’t work for me. How can I pivot what I’m doing to apply what I’ve already learned, but still do something that might work better for me?’” 

Marcus Morgan ’26, a student entrepreneur, said that Hammerschmitt has become his “go-to guy” for making connections and working through problems. Morgan started Championsbrew, a beverage startup, under the mentorship of Associate Vice President of Auxiliary Services Ben Marks, and has received further support from Hammerschmitt. 

“Logan does a great job of helping you really exercise your brain and expand your thinking. And he's a problem solver, so even if you didn't know there was a problem, he's going to figure it out and help you solve it,” Morgan said. “I think for anyone who is aspiring to be an entrepreneur like me, meeting with Logan is a great way to get started.” 

To learn more about LIT, visit the initiative’s webpage or email Hammerschmitt at hammerschmitt@roanoke.edu. To keep up with events hosted by LIT, follow @litatroanoke on Instagram.