Venture program stimulates start-ups

The program is designed for minorities and women.

STAFF REPORT

YOUNGSTOWN — The Youngstown Metropolitan Housing Authority and the Youngstown Area Development Corp. have developed entrepreneurial- training classes designed to spur business ventures for minorities and women.

The initial orientation session for the first 12 people selected for the program will be at 5:30 p.m. today at the YMHA Resource Center at Westlake Terrace, 976 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

The workshop will contain an overview of what is required to start a business, and the content will include topics such as identifying a business, the necessity of business insurance and developing a business plan.

After the orientation, the training classes consist of 10 sessions twice a week for six weeks and will be tailored to meet the desired business-development interest of each trainee, said William M. Carter, YADC executive director.

Trainees will have classes on marketing a product or service, understanding federal state and local taxes, contracting with federal, state and local government agencies and protecting and financing a business.

YADC also is providing technical assistance to participants in preparing financial statements and registering with Ohio as an Encouraging Diversity, Growth and Equity Business enterprise.

According to the Ohio Department of Administrative Services Web site, the EDGE program is designed to facilitate access to state-government contracts and business services for certified businesses by establishing goals for state agencies in awarding contracts.

After successful completion of the entrepreneurial-training program, the participants will be eligible to apply for a business loan from the YMHA’s micro-loan fund.

Carter said there is about $200,000 available in the fund. The money is being allocated through the Mahoning Valley Economic Development Corp., a partnership of public and private interests focused on the revitalization and diversification in the Mahoning Valley, Northeast Ohio and western Pennsylvania. It focuses on the creation and retention of jobs.

Carter said the money can be used only by YMHA residents and is for helping minorities and women become entrepreneurs.

At the time a person becomes an entrepreneur and has the business venture registered with the state, that person can borrow up to $10,000 from the loan fund to start the business or help grow it, Carter added.

Tamara Robinson, a YMHA resident and owner of The Clean Nest, will be presented with a loan today to further her business. She is a graduate of the program.

Key personnel involved in the program are Carter, a certified business analyst who counsels and assists clients in business-development plans; Jerry Sutton, a certified public accountant for more than 20 years; A. Mustafa Ali, who has degrees in engineering technology and business analysis and who has expertise in finance, statistics, marketing research and economics; and James Glenn, YADC chief executive officer, a former Internal Revenue Service agent, manager and district director representative.

Call the YADC at (330) 746-5681.