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East Boston Main Streets Successfully
Kicks Off Small Business Institute
East Boston,
MA (May 5, 2014) – On Monday, April 28 the inaugural class of EBMS’
Small Business Institute convened at the EBNHC on Addison Street. A
full complement of adult students, some current small business
owners, others aspiring business owners, convened at 9:00am in the
training facilities of the East Boston Neighborhood Health Center
for the first class of a year-long training curriculum developed by
East Boston Main Streets and generously supported by a grant from
Citizens Bank and the Boston Main Streets Foundation.
“What we are attempting with this initiative is to bring high
quality training opportunities to members of our local micro
business community in a way that is immediately accessible and
relevant to their needs,” says Max Gruner, Executive Director of
EBMS. With 20 students signed-up for the year-long curriculum and a
waiting list of over 10 additional students, the initial interest in
the Small Business Institute exceeded expectations.
“We are so pleased by the community’s interest in this program and
are excited that our vision of building capacity within our business
community through high quality adult education seems to resonate
with business owners in East Boston,” says Michelle Brown-Droese,
Director of the SBI at EBMS.
Meeting every third Monday, the project based curriculum developed
by EBMS will provide participants the opportunity for one-on-one
mentorship with content experts in-between classes, “We are
determined to provide class participants with the knowledge and
resources to develop and create tangible results that they can
immediately apply to their business ventures, whether it be a
business plan, a website, or a marketing strategy,” explains Max
Gruner. EBMS is currently considering running a second, year-long
institute for the students currently on the wait-list who were
unable to be included in the first cohort.
“We were surprised by the number of applications we received; we are
now looking at the logistics of running a second class in parallel
with the first because there is clearly a need for this kind of
programming in East Boston,” says Michelle Brown-Droese. Victor
Mosquera, owner of the soon to open Taste of Eastie Coffee Shop at
75 Meridian Street puts it succinctly: “What a great opportunity.
This was a fantastic class. I wish all business owners in Eastie had
the opportunity to attend.”
For more details or questions please contact Max Gruner at
mgruner@ebmainstreets.com or Michelle Brown-Droese at
michellebrown-droese@ebmainstreets.com or at 617-561-1044.
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