Entrepreneurship Center awarded $500,000 to support Inland Empire BIPOC small business owner and entrepreneurs
"BIPOC small businesses and entrepreneurs are vital to our local economy, and they have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic," said Mike Stull, director of the IECE.
SAN BERNARDINO, Calif., Oct. 6, 2021 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- The Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship (IECE) at California State University, San Bernardino has been awarded $500,000 in unrestricted funding from the Citi Foundation to reach and serve more local Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) entrepreneurs and small businesses.
The Citi Foundation issued a $25 Million Small Business Technical Assistance RFP earlier this year and awarded 50 organizations nationwide with funding to support continued work in providing technical assistance to BIPOC-led small businesses that have been disproportionately affected by the unprecedented health, social and economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"BIPOC small businesses and entrepreneurs are vital to our local economy, and they have been hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic," said Mike Stull, director of the IECE. "Prior to the pandemic, the number of new Black-owned businesses and new Hispanic-owned businesses were growing at a more rapid pace than the overall business growth rate. New and early-stage businesses face numerous challenges and the pandemic has compounded those challenges. The timing of the Citi Foundation award comes as a critical time as the economy is opening up, and businesses are rebuilding and responding to new market opportunities."
The IECE, housed in the Jack H. Brown College of Business and Public Administration, delivers innovative programs and educational resources to entrepreneurs and small business owners through a broad range of community and campus programs. As the leading entrepreneurial support organization in the Inland Empire, the IECE is also one of the largest University-based Entrepreneurship Centers in the world and has been recognized by the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business (AACSB International) as a top 35 program for fostering entrepreneurship and innovation.
"This recent award from the Citi Foundation is a testament to the importance of BIPOC businesses to economic growth in the region, the strong reputation IECE has built as effective stewards of funds and the significant impact both will have on the surrounding communities," said Shanthi Srinivas, interim dean of the Jack H. Brown College.
"Innovative organizations like IECE are providing pivotal support to small businesses as they navigate an ever-changing economic landscape," said Brandee McHale, head of Citi Community Investing and Development and president of the Citi Foundation. "The Citi Foundation is proud to be supporting IECE and other change agents with the unrestricted, flexible funding they need to deliver specialized support to more minority-owned small businesses in their communities."
IECE operates the Small Business Development Center, the Women's Business Centers and California State Trade Expansion Programs in the Inland Empire region, which operate from full-time offices in Colton, Ontario, Palm Desert, Riverside and 10 part-time offices throughout Riverside and San Bernardino counties. The programs have a long history of delivering free business counseling, mentoring and training to existing and aspiring small business owners and entrepreneurs. Collectively, the programs have provided support to over 10,000 small business owners and entrepreneurs in 2020.
About the Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship (IECE) http://entre.csusb.edu
Established in 1999, the Inland Empire Center for Entrepreneurship supports and celebrates entrepreneurship and small business through innovative programs and educational resources. IECE is based at the Jack H. Brown College of Business and Public Administration at CSUSB and coordinates academic programs that lead to business degrees in entrepreneurship for undergraduate and graduate students as well as delivering experiential learning and student support programs.
About Cal State San Bernardino http://csusb.edu
California State University, San Bernardino is a preeminent center of intellectual and cultural activity in Inland Southern California. Opened in 1965 and set at the foothills of the beautiful San Bernardino Mountains, the university serves more than 20,000 students each year and graduates about 4,000 students annually. The university offers more than 70 traditional baccalaureate and master's degree programs, education credential and certificate programs, and a doctorate program in educational leadership. Every one of its eligible academic programs has earned national accreditation. CSUSB reflects the dynamic diversity of the region and has the most diverse student population of any university in the Inland Empire. More than 80 percent of those who graduate are the first in their families to do so.
For more information on Cal State San Bernardino, contact the university's Office of Strategic Communication at (909) 537-5007 and visit https://www.csusb.edu/inside.
Media Contact
Stacey Allis, IECE, 9093294515, [email protected]
SOURCE IECE
