FERGUS FALLS, Minn. — Directors of the West Central Minnesota Small Business Development Center, or SBDC, will embark on a street tour in honor of National SBDC Day on March 15, stopping at several communities in the area for friendly gatherings – Greetings with stakeholders, small business owners and other supporters.
SBDC Regional Director Ian Carlstrom and SBDC Deputy Director Amy Anderson will tour in style, driving a mobile SBDC unit shared between the nine SBDC regional offices in Minnesota. Directors will make 45-minute visits to venues in Moorhead, Detroit Lakes, Perham, Alexandria, Fergus Falls and Barnesville.
The tour is designed to raise awareness of SBDC’s beneficial impact on the region, as well as help publicize the new location of SBDC’s regional office, M State, and introduce Carlstrom and Anderson to their new roles with the organization.
“We look forward to going into our local communities to meet our SBDC partners, share success stories and continue to build relationships across our service territory,” said Carlstrom. “SBDC Day is a national, collective proclamation of the impact SBDCs are having on the lives of entrepreneurs and other dreamers and innovators.”
“This is an opportunity to reconnect with entrepreneurs and other key stakeholders in our region and in our new roles at our new host, M State,” Anderson said. “We’re making stops in six key communities across the region and we’re hoping that everyone who makes it will stop by and visit us.”
The road tour schedule for Wednesday March 15th is as follows:
8am – Moorhead (M State Campus, 1900 28th Avenue South) 9:45am – Detroit Lakes (M State Campus, 900 Highway 34 East) 11am – Perham (Perham Area Chamber of Commerce, 185 East Main) 1pm – Alexandria (Alexandria Area Economic Development Commission, 324 Broadway Street #101) 2:45 p.m. – Fergus Falls (The Foundry, 101 West Lincoln Avenue) 4:15 p.m. – Barnesville (Barnesville Economic Development Authority, 202 Front Street North)
West Central Minnesota SBDC, formerly home to Concordia College, opened its new headquarters on M State’s Moorhead campus in Room B163 in early January. Satellite offices are expected to open in the college’s Detroit Lakes and Fergus Falls campuses over the next few months.
SBDCs connect small business owners and entrepreneurs with federal, state, and local government resources, as well as with the resources and knowledge of higher education institutions, economic development organizations, and the private sector. The national SBDC program is the nation’s largest small business support network.
A member of the Minnesota state college and university system, M State offers credit courses in over 70 career and liberal arts programs to more than 6,500 students each year online and in person at its Detroit Lakes, Fergus Falls, Moorhead and Wadena campuses. The college also works with communities to provide staff development services and other engaging training programs.
Press release and photo provided by Minnesota State Community and Technical College
