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11/4/2006

CCSU to host Small Business Development Center

By Scott Whipple

Herald Staff

NEW BRITAIN--Small business in the state got a boost Friday when the U.S. Small Business Administration selected Central Connecticut State University to host its Connecticut Small Business Development Center. With headquarters in CCSU’s Institute of Technology & Business Development, subcenters will be located at Eastern, Southern and Western Connecticut State Universities as well as the Department of Economic and Community Development’s Office of Small Business. The cooperative agreement becomes effective Jan. 1

The Small Business Development Center program is the nation’s largest government-funded small business management and technical assistance program. It boasts 63 lead centers and more than 900 service delivery points throughout the United States and its territories.

The SBA will provide a first-year grant for nine months of $703,270. This will be matched by a State of Connecticut and other nonfederal grants of $930,255, for a total project cost of $1,633,525. After the first year the SBA grant for a full year will be $938,000.

The program will deliver up-to-date counseling, training and technical assistance in all aspects of small business management. Services include assisting small businesses with financial, marketing, production, organization, engineering and technical problems and feasibility studies. Special programs and economic development activities include international trade assistance, technical assistance, procurement assistance, venture capital formation and rural development.

A special effort will be made to attract minority members of socially and economically disadvantaged groups, veterans, women and the disabled. Assistance will be provided to both current or potential small business owners.

Bernard Sweeney, SBA Connecticut District Director, praised the partnership, and the university's "vision and track record for providing value-added service to Connecticut’s small business community; (this) will be a tremendous boost to the state's economy."

James Abromaitis, Department of Economic and Community Development Commissioner, represented Gov. M. Jodi Rell. The governor called the partnership "a very good fit; it links strong business and technology programs with the state’s entrepreneurs and business community."

Larry McHugh, chair of the Connecticut State University Board of Trustees, said the four universities "are uniquely positioned to reach out to businesses across the state and offer considerable expertise and resources."

CSUS Chancellor Dr. David Carter pointed out that the partnership will "provide a skilled and well-educated workforce that will benefit Connecticut’s economic growth."

CCSU President Dr. Jack Miller said his university’s main role "is to build the economy of the state of Connecticut, and this (partnership) will help us do that."

ITBD Managing Director Richard Mullins, said the new partnership marks a significant step forward in the expansion of ITBD’s services to Connecticut businesses. He praised former state senator Joe Harper for bringing ITBD downtown, also private investors, CCSU Alumnus John Patrick, president and CEO of TD Banknorth, and John O’Toole, manager, economic and community development, CL&P and Yankee Gas.

"This is a major development in the chancellor’s initiative to link education, business, and government in a process promoting economic growth in the state," Mullins said.

Mullins told The Herald that the new operation will be separate from that of ITBD(though the main office will be located at 185 Main Street).

"We will be hiring between 14 and 16 people," Mullins said. "Two will be located at DECD in Hartford; others will be assigned to one of the four campuses, then there will be a pool of four to six counselors."

Mullins said he will be using a business model he learned while he was with (the nationwide accounting firm of) KPMG.

"It’s an effective way of going to customers rather than having customers come to the marble pillars," he said.

Scott Whipple can be reached at swhipple@newbritainherald.com or by calling (860)225-4601, Ext.319.

Nov 07 2006 4:15 AM

WestConn adds small business program

School to hold regional offices for federally-backed center

By Robert Gold
THE NEWS-TIMES

DANBURY -- Western Connecticut State University soon will serve as a regional base for a Connecticut small business program.

Starting in January, Central Connecticut State University will take over the federally-backed Connecticut Small Business Center program. And Central will start a regional office at WestConn, where counselors will train and advise small business owners. WestConn business students and professors will likely help research business plans for those looking to start new businesses.

Central is taking over the program from University of Connecticut, which had 12 offices, including one at the Greater Danbury Chamber of Commerce.

The U.S. Small Business Administration awarded the program to Central, which will run a headquarters out of its New Britain-based Institute for Business Technology and Development.

Allen Morton, dean of business at WestConn, said the program should help both students and local entrepreneurs.

"It helps make them more bankable so businesses would be willing to give them money based on the soundness of their work," Morton said, referring to small business hopefuls.

Central also will run regional offices at Eastern Connecticut State University, Southern Connecticut State University and the state's Department of Economic and Community Development office of small business.

The program is partially funded by the U.S. Small Business Administration, along with state money and private donations. The SBA gave Central Connecticut State University $703,000 for the first nine months of next year. Along with state grants and other contributions, the program will run for $1.6 million for the nine-month period.

Richard Mullins, the managing director at the Institute for Business Technology and Development, said the group expects to talk with several chambers of commerce about using its space. SBA counselor Harvey Blomberg has worked out of the Danbury chamber twice a week for 10 years.

Any current counselors will have to reapply, Mullins said. "This is going to be a brand new start," he said.

Blomberg said he hasn't spoken with the new program directors yet. "It's up to them to make that decision," he said about who is hired.

The University of Connecticut decided to end their relationship with the program this summer. Richard Veilleux, a University of Connecticut spokesman, said it was partly because the university was focusing more on technology research and development.

"It was a mutual decision," he said. "We thought there would be better places in the state that would be a better fit."

· Contact Robert Gold

at rgold@newstimes.com

or at 203-731-3350.

Small-Business Aid Program Moving To New Britain

November 4, 2006
By JANICE PODSADA, Courant Staff Writer

The Connecticut Small Business Development Center will move to Central Connecticut State University in New Britain starting in January, the U.S. Small Business Administration announced Friday.

The move ends the SBA's affiliation with the University of Connecticut, which has housed and operated the program at its campuses for the past 26 years.

The program, said to be the nation's largest government-funded small-business assistance program, is operated and partially funded by the SBA. It provides educational, technical and management assistance to small-business owners and entrepreneurs.

CCSU has a proven track record for "providing value-added service to Connecticut's small-business community," said Bernard Sweeney, director of the SBA's Connecticut district.

The program's state administrative headquarters will move from UConn's campus in Storrs to CCSU's Institute of Technology and Business Development, a community outreach program at 185 Main St. in downtown New Britain. The institute provides training and technology assistance to businesses and other organizations.

The SBA will provide a first-year grant for nine months of $703,000, which will be matched by state and other non-federal grants of more than $930,000, for a total cost of more than $1.6 million.

In July, the University of Connecticut and the SBA decided to dissolve their partnership at the end of this year. As a result, the SBA sought a new partner to operate and house the program. Several institutions of higher education in the state were invited to bid for the program, said Hugh Curley, SBA Connecticut business development specialist.

The split with UConn was amicable, Curley said. "They were good partners."

"We're a research and technology transfer-oriented institution," said Richard Veilleux, a UConn spokesman. "I think UConn and the SBA agreed there would be more appropriate sites in the state."

The business development center program serves a range of large- and small-scale entrepreneurs, including the lone entrepreneur "who wants to start a hot dog stand," said Mark W. McLaughlin, associate vice president of marketing and communications at CCSU.

SBA "sub-centers" will also be at Eastern, Southern and Western Connecticut state universities.

Central To Offer 'virtual Expansion' Of Business Development Centers

$1.6M Grant Will Fund Four 'mobile' Offices Around State

Published on 11/4/2006 in Region » Region News

New Britain — Central Connecticut State University will use a virtual business model to revamp the state's Small Business Development Centers.

The U.S. Small Business Administration awarded a bid for the $1.6 million program Friday. Central was the only applicant.

The SBA, university officials and political leaders gathered at Central's Institute of Technology & Business Development to announce the new partnership, which is replacing a program run by the University of Connecticut.

The centers, which the SBA manages all over the country, are intended to provide up-to-date counseling, training and technical assistance to new and existing small businesses.

In practical terms, the 11 centers and two offices hosted for years by UConn at Avery Point in Groton and elsewhere around the state will cease to exist. They will be replaced by four “mobile” offices, each one staffed by a single business development specialist, a full-time counselor and one or more part-timers.

Central Connecticut's center will be housed in the state Department of Economic and Community Development, Mullins said. The other centers will be located at Eastern Connecticut State University in Willimantic, Western Connecticut State University in Danbury, and Southern Connecticut State University in New Haven.

“It's a leaner, meaner model,” said Richard Mullins Jr., managing director of the Institute and the architect of the winning bid. “The days of bricks and mortar are over, because the overhead is high. This is the way we're doing business in the 21st century, taking advantage of laptop and cellular communication.

“The more nimble we are, the quicker we can respond and the more effective we'll be in meeting our clients' needs.”