$13M grant to build North Little Rock innovation hub

Shorter College will foster entrepreneurs

Shorter College president Jerome Green.
Shorter College president Jerome Green.

Shorter College plans to develop an inner-city business innovation hub in North Little Rock after school officials were notified Friday that they'd receive millions of dollars in grant funding.

College President Jerome Green said Shorter and the University of Arkansas Global Campus jointly applied for a $25 million grant from the U.S. Department of Education to develop their innovation hubs. He said the two campuses were awarded $13 million, which will be split at a later date.

"It's a project that will operate in Central Arkansas and in Northwest Arkansas with the University of Arkansas Global Campus, who is developing a similar hub there," he said. "Our business incubator will work in conjunction with them using distance learning and searching facilities and consultants."

Green said the innovation hub will allow resources to be made available to increase workforce capability, business development and entrepreneurship.

The funding source is the Education Stabilization Fund-Reimagining Workforce Preparation Grants that the federal government created to help states leverage entrepreneurship to create educational opportunities and pathways that help citizens return to work, small businesses recover and new entrepreneurs thrive

The grant will help the college purchase and complete renovations of Shorter College for the Entrepreneurial Studies Program. The focus will be on providing critical education, training and startups to boost entrepreneurial opportunities in Arkansas.

Extensive training and resources will be provided, including interview preparation, business plan development and technological advancement. The business hub will use tools, skills and expertise to inspire innovators and entrepreneurs to expand the range of educational and economic opportunities for themselves and their communities.

"We are very excited to have been selected," Green said. "We know that you might get a degree and still not get a job in this economy. The innovation hub allows people to create jobs where the market calls for services to be rendered."

Green said that when the idea for the innovation hub began to take shape, the school reached out to the city for assistance.

Robert Birch, director of development for North Little Rock, said Michael Harris, a professor at Shorter, approached him in July asking for assistance with the grant process. He said Mayor Joe Smith has always valued the city's relationship with the college and gave him approval to make the innovation hub a priority.

"I requested that we bring in Dr. Chris Jones with the Arkansas Regional Innovation Hub to lend thoughts and ideas for the development of this project," he said. "Over the next few months we have worked together to assist Shorter in the grant as well as providing the off-campus space needed to make this vision come to life ... We are excited to get to work on the next steps of this project."

Birch said the city decided to provide space at its historic Rock Island Train Station, which is just a few blocks from the campus, to develop the hub.

Jones complimented Green's leadership and Harris' vision for a long-term, substantive impact that Shorter College can have on the community.

"It's refreshing to see that the Department of Education is realizing and supporting their great work through this ReImagine Grant," he said. "The Innovation Hub is honored to be a partner in this work and can't wait to help make magic with them."

Green said the hub will have office space, conference space and a lot of technology.

"One of the things that is important for young business professionals is technological capability," he said. "We will be working to attract professionals using computer technology to provide 21st-century skills for 21st-century activity."

Birch said the grant will allow Shorter to enhance its workforce by helping students who may have felt unable to reach their goals due to being convicted felons. He said it will also allow the college to offer associates degrees and career training for an untapped workforce base in North Little Rock.

"As well as, space for these students to innovate and accessibility to be a business incubator to house start-up businesses to grow," he said.

Green said there is still a lot of development that needs to be done before implementation.

"We will be seeking input from industries, the business community and the community at large," he said. "We will also work with the workforce board to get fair objectives and benefits from their networks. We believe this will be a great thing for Central Arkansas and the state as a whole."

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