Askinosie Chocolate, The Askinosie Foundation and Drury University recently announced that applications are open for Chocolate University’s class of 2027.
Applications are now being accepted through Sept. 15 at chocolateuniversity.org, according to a news release.
Described by Askinosie Chocolate officials as “an exciting experiential learning journey for high school juniors and seniors in southwest Missouri,” Chocolate University teaches students about global business, entrepreneurship and social responsibility using the Springfield-based chocolate company’s bean-to-bar supply chain as a real-world learning model.
“Chocolate University gives southwest Missouri students the rare opportunity to step beyond the classroom and experience business in action,” said Missy Gelner, Chocolate University executive director and chief kinship officer at Askinosie Chocolate, in an email to Springfield Business Journal.
That includes basics on entrepreneurship and finance, Gelner said, and an introduction to managing global supply chains and Askinosie Chocolate-style direct trade relationships with the growers of cacao beans across the world.
“Students learn how a locally rooted company can compete globally while using business as a force for good,” Gelner added. She said Chocolate University’s class of 2027 will be the eighth group of student travelers engaged by the program, which counts 123 alumni since its inception in 2007.
“Origin trips” have gone out from Springfield roughly every two years since 2010. While pandemic effects prompted a 2020 trip to be canceled, Chocolate University has been back in travel mode with immersive trips in 2023 and 2025.
Alumni say the program had significant impact on them.
“Business-wise, Chocolate University changed the way I thought of ‘success’ in the business world,” Springfield Catholic High School graduate Sarah Han told SBJ in a text message early this morning. She visited Tanzania through Chocolate University in July 2025.
“I think most people believe success is measured by profit or brand recognition. And yes, that is a big part of success, but seeing the relationship that Askinosie Chocolate has with the cocoa farmers firsthand taught me that shared success can be a smart business strategy,” Han said. “The time and effort that was invested … was unlike anything I had seen before. It made me realize the most sustainable businesses are the ones where every person in the supply chain feels valued.”
Life lessons came out of Han’s Chocolate University experience in Tanzania, she said – including an emphasis on “what it means to live a truly meaningful life.”
The English-speaking east African nation of Tanzania counts over 70 million residents and is a multiparty republic, according to Britannica.com. Earlier this summer, U.S. officials signed a five-year bilateral global health agreement with Tanzania under the Trump administration’s America First Global Health Strategy, in part to assist Tanzania in building capacity to address health threats and infectious disease, according to a July 1 news release by the U.S. State Department.
“A majority of the people we met lived with fewer material comforts than I was accustomed to, yet they radiated a unique sense of joy, purpose and generosity,” Han said. “It seemed that they all found fulfillment in caring for us. The school headmaster still emails me, asking how college is going.”
The care for each other shown by Tanzania residents and the pride they took in their work were important for Han, she said, adding, “I hope to also radiate those qualities because a meaningful life is about using the opportunities and talents you’ve been given to uplift people.”
Han said she likes to tell people, “it’s the happiest I’ve been.” She underscored her view that Askinosie Chocolate founder Shawn Askinosie and his team have cultivated strong relationships with Tanzania cacao farmers and their community.
Chase Haustein, who graduated from Kickapoo High School last year, said by text message that Chocolate University “gave me firsthand insight into ethical trade, global supply chains and farmer negotiations, completely reshaping how I understand business and pushing me far outside my comfort zone.”
Haustein added, “Since then, I’ve become more willing to say ‘yes’ to new opportunities, which has led me to leadership roles in college and experiences I never would have imagined.”
These insights are part of what Chocolate University promises to its young students, Gelner said. They are welcomed into cacao-farming communities “as friends and partners – not as tourists,” she said.
“At its heart, Chocolate University is about helping young people see that their lives, choices and ideas can matter far beyond their own community,” she said. “…Students come to understand the people, cultures, relationships and responsibilities within a global supply chain, while also discovering more about who they are and what they may be capable of becoming.”
Chocolate University’s curriculum includes lessons in business finance, innovative problem-solving, craft chocolate production, cacao agronomy, international cultures, leadership, personal reflection and vision-setting for the future, according to the news release.
Current high school juniors and seniors throughout southwest Missouri who are graduating in 2027 or 2028 are invited to apply, Askinosie officials said. Fourteen students will be selected to participate in a six-month preparatory course culminating in a 10-day international cocoa-origin and business immersion trip.