Skip to content
Business

News

2/19/2014 - Greater New England Minority Supplier Development Council Opens Community Business School in Bridgeport

Bridgeport CT (PRWEB) February 07, 2014

The Greater New England Minority Supplier Development Council (GNEMDC) is opening the Community Business School (CBS) at its 333 State Street offices in Bridgeport, CT on March 1, 2014. The Community Business School will serve as a resource for early-stage minority entrepreneurs in the area. Attendance is free. There are no prerequisites. There are no grades. Success will be judged not by grades, but by growing incomes, jobs and wealth in Bridgeport.

The Community Business School will be open every Saturday morning from 9:00 AM to 11:30. Dr. Fred McKinney, President and CEO of the GNEMSDC, will lead the morning sessions. The CBS will rely heavily on successful entrepreneurs and business leaders to participate as guest speakers and coaches. The experiential learning approach is the most effective way to train early-stage entrepreneurs. The CBS may be the first formal business training for program students, We believe that there is great potential for success if inner-city entrepreneurs are given the tools and a supportive environment needed to be successful.

Several corporate leaders from the area have pledged their support, including Paul Timpanelli, President and CEO of the Bridgeport Regional Business Council and William Jennings, President and CEO of Bridgeport Hospital.

The Greater New England Minority Supplier Development Council is the largest non-profit minority supplier organization in New England. With offices in Bridgeport, CT and Boston, MA, the GNEMSDC certifies minority business enterprises (MBEs) on behalf of its 600 corporate members. The GNEMSDC connects those certified MBEs to the corporate membership. The GNEMSDC is the regional affiliate of the National Minority Supplier Development Council.

Fred McKinney holds a B.A. in economics from UCLA and a Ph.D. in economics from Yale University. Before becoming the CEO at the GNEMSDC, Dr. McKinney taught economics and business at Sacred Heart University, Brandeis University and the University of Connecticut.