Bill Would Help Provide Entrepreneurs at Minority-Serving Institutions With Additional Opportunities to Join Nevada’s Small Business Community
WASHINGTON DC – Today, during Small Business Week, U.S. Senators Jacky Rosen (D-NV) and Thom Tillis (R-NC) introduced the Minority Entrepreneurship Grant Program Act. The bipartisan legislation would establish a Minority Entrepreneurship Grant Program through the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) to award grants to Minority Serving Institutions (MSIs) and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to promote and increase opportunities for minority students to start their own businesses.
“Nevada’s small businesses power our economy, which is why we need to ensure minority entrepreneurs have all the resources to open and maintain their small businesses,” dijo el Senador Rosen. “This bipartisan legislation will help increase opportunities for Nevadans at Minority Serving Institutions to start their own businesses. I will always fight for Nevada’s small businesses and to increase opportunities for more innovators.”
“Small businesses are the backbone of our economy and are critical to the success of our communities in North Carolina and across the nation,” said Senator Tillis. “It’s vital that we continue to develop the minority entrepreneurs and innovators of tomorrow to sustain economic growth and job creation. I’m proud to reintroduce this legislation to ensure that young entrepreneurs from Minority Serving Institutions and Historically Black Colleges and Universities in our state have the support needed to kick start their businesses.”
Under the bipartisan bill, funding from the SBA would be available to HBCUs and MSIs, including Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) and Asian American and Native American Pacific Islander-Serving Institutions (AANAPISIs). Nevada is home to five HSIs, including: the College of Southern Nevada (CSN), Nevada State College (NSC), Truckee Meadows Community College (TMCC), the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV), and Western Nevada College (WNC); and two emerging HSIs: the University of Nevada Reno and Great Basin College. CSN, NSC, and UNLV are also AANAPISIs.
As a member of the Senate Small Business and Entrepreneurship Committee, Senator Rosen has been a strong supporter of Nevada’s vibrant small business community. Earlier this year, Senator Rosen helped introduce the Expanding Access to Capital for Rural Job Creators Act to help eliminate hurdles for small businesses in rural areas. She also successfully pushed for the establishment of Nevada’s first-ever Veteran Business Outreach Center to help veterans access resources to start their own small businesses. Last year, she also helped secure nearly $113 million in federal funding to support Nevada’s small businesses.
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