YOUTH

For more youth visit glendalestar.com

GlendaleStar.com /GlendaleStar

GCC student-entrepreneurs receive seed funds

BY GLENDALE STAR STAFF

Glendale Community College students Kaitlyn Benincosa and Fahad Shakir have each been awarded $2,500 from the Everyday Entrepreneurship Venture Fund.

Benincosa and Shakir received the $2,500 seed funding for their business concepts. The two student-entrepreneurs will also receive ongoing mentoring and advising from the Maricopa Small Business Development Center, as well as from GCC faculty and staff.

Benincosa is opening Belle Botanical & Creations, a business that creates permanent fl owers and fl oral arrangements for weddings and events. Shakir is expanding an existing business, Falafel Avenue, a mobile vegan food concept.

Everyday Entrepreneurship Venture Fund (EEVF) is a program created by the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE) to help community college students start and scale their businesses. NACCE is fostering community investment through this program by matching local donations up to $20,000.

GCC, along with four other colleges in the Maricopa Community College District, participates in the EEVF program and supports student-entrepreneurs by providing workshops and classes, advising, and sponsoring pitch competitions.

Several GCC business faculty members have been instrumental in making this opportunity available for students. Dr. Gabriela Cojanu recruits and preselects students for the program, and Brent Kleinman helps secure donations, including a $2,500 donation from the Encanto Palmcroft Benefi ts for the spring 2021 program. Cojanu and Kleinan, along with business faculty from other Maricopa colleges, served as judges.

The EEVF program will continue in fall 2021 and spring 2022, making it possible for additional student-entrepreneurs to participate and have the opportunity to receive funding.

For more information about EEVF, the Innovation Challenge program, as well as small-business and entrepreneurship classes, contact Cojanu at gabriela.cojanu@gccaz.edu.

Glendale Community College provides 41 associate degrees, 61 certificate programs and a range of nondegree offerings, all available to students in traditional, online and hybrid formats.

Get the latest breaking news and top local stories in Glendale!

Hosted by all six West Valley Chambers of Commerce at the Glendale Civic Center, the 2021 Biz 2 Biz Expo offers an unparalleled opportunity for all businesses throughout the West Valley and beyond to showcase their products and services to hundreds of decision makers and buyers.

Free to attend and open to the public, this highly productive event offers the perfect opportunity for maximum impact within an efficient three hour window. AUGUST 2 6 , 2 0 2 1 | 4 TO 7 P . M .

GLENDALE CI VIC CENTER

5 7 5 0 W . GLENN DRIVE , GLENDALE , AZ 8 5 3 0 1