NACCE Signs Strategic Alliance Memorandum with U.S. Small Business Administration

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: Heather Van Sickle

vansickle@nacce.com (413) 306-3131 ext. 303

U.S. SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION AND NATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR COMMUNITY COLLEGE ENTREPRENEURSHIP FORM STRATEGIC ALLIANCE

New Collaboration Will Involve Joint Training and Outreach Activities

Washington, D.C. – December 4, 2012– The U.S. Small Business Administration and the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE) have entered into a strategic alliance that will enable the two organizations to jointly pursue their shared mission of expanding entrepreneurship and small business development in communities across the country. In the coming months, the two organizations will develop joint training programs and outreach activities to educate NACCE members about the many resources the SBA has available for small business owners and entrepreneurs.

"We recognize that the work NACCE members are doing in entrepreneurship education in the communities they serve is of great importance in our nation's push to support the growth of small business,” said Michael Chodos, the SBA's Associate Administrator for the Office of Entrepreneurial Development. "The SBA has many resources and experts who can support this work, and we are looking forward to building a strong relationship with NACCE and its members that gives us a new way to reach out to small business owners and would-be small business owners all across the country.”

Now celebrating its 10^th anniversary, NACCE is t he nation's leading organization focused on promoting entrepreneurship through community colleges. The nonprofit includes over 300 colleges in the U.S. and abroad, representing over 1,400 entrepreneurship education professionals who expose approximately 465,000 students to the possibility of putting their newly acquired skills and knowledge to work in their own business, if not immediately then at some point in the future.

"NACCE members work with small business owners and would-be entrepreneurs every day on their campuses,” said NACCE Executive Director Heather Van Sickle. "The SBA has a wealth of information and resources that can be tremendously helpful to these individuals – resources that can help them get their business started or help an existing business grow and prosper. We look forward to collaborating closely with the SBA to make sure our members are fully aware of all that the SBA has to offer.”

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