The U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced today that it has granted more than $10 million for the continuation of 80 existing Women's Business Centers and the creation of an additional 19 new centers from Maine to Washington state to Texas and many locations in between.
Each SBA Women's Business Center is able to tailor its offerings and resources based on the economic area it serves, which allows entrepreneurial women from all walks of life the opportunity to learn how to build a business from the ground up or help a currently owned venture a greater chance to flourish.
Here's the press release from the SBA describing what a Women's Business Center offers and where the new locations are:
Women's Centers Will Aid in the Development of Women-owned Businesses
The $12 million includes funding for the 19 new WBCs, continued funding for the 29 existing WBCs that are still in their first five years of funding and 51 older WBCs that were awarded sustainability grants. Each WBC is required to match a portion of the federal funds with private contributions.
WBCs are community-based and they are in nearly every state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and American Samoa, serving a wide variety of economic environments including urban, suburban and rural. Each WBC tailors its services to meet the needs of the local area, and works to provide women business owners with long-term training, counseling and mentoring, as well as access to all of the SBA's programs and services.
The WBC program, established by Congress in 1988, is administered by the SBA's Office of Women's Business Ownership and promotes the growth of women- owned businesses through business training and technical assistance, and provides access to credit and capital, federal contracts, and international trade opportunities.
The new WBCs are located in the following cities: Wiscasset, Maine; Kenosha, Wis.; Seattle, Wash.; New York, N.Y.; Durant, Okla.; Philadelphia, Pa.; Greensburg, Pa.; Los Angeles, Calif.; Wilmington, Del.; San Antonio, Texas; San Luis Obispo, Calif.; Syracuse, N.Y.; Forest, Miss.; Newark, N.J.; Santa Ana, Calif.; Huntsville, Ala. (serving Northern Alabama counties); Mobile, Ala.; San Bernardino, Calif.; and Albuquerque, N.M.
With the addition of these 19 centers, women entrepreneurs now have 99 WBCs nationwide to help them start and grow their small businesses. The WBC program served more than 144,000 clients across the country last year, providing help with financial management, procurement training, marketing and technical assistance. WBCs also provide specialized programs that include mentoring in various languages, Internet training, issues facing displaced workers and rural home-based entrepreneurs.
For a complete list of all centers receiving grants, to find the location nearest to you and for additional information about the SBA's Women's Business Center program, visit online at http://www.onlinewbc.gov/wbc.pdf.
Thats good to hear, Melonie. thanks for the news. Do you think these funds benefit the woman who genuinely needs money to launch a great idea?
Posted by: Ellen Weber | November 14, 2006 8:08 PM | Permalink to Comment