SMC — Small businesses could receive a big boost with the recent opening of a small-business development center, which will offer workshops and counseling for entrepreneurs, Santa Monica College officials said.
The center, which is one of 36 in the state, is funded by two grants totaling $250,000 from the U.S. Small Business Administration and the California Community College chancellor’s office, said Chito Cajayon, the director of the center.
The grants will allow the center to offer 50 workshops this year on such topics as writing a business plan, accessing capital, marketing and sales, and Internet commerce. Free business counseling also will be provided.
“We have funding for just the first year, but we foresee it going for many years,” Cajayon said. “If you perform well, you don’t have to worry about funding.”
The center, which opened Jan. 9, is temporarily located at the college’s Academy of Entertainment and Technology,
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on February 8, 2006. Read the original PDF.