The Western Pennsylvania District Office of the U.S. Small Business Administration recently presented the Saint Vincent College Small Business Development Center (SBDC) with two Awards of Excellence for its outstanding accomplishments in 2007. Saint Vincent College won both the Champion Award for management consulting and the Champion Award for educational programming. The awards are given annually to the SBDC program that best demonstrates its dedication and commitment to SBA programs.

The award was presented at the conclusion of the Quality Circle 2008 Small Business Lending Conference sponsored by the Western Pennsylvania Association of SBA Guaranteed Lenders. Quality Circle is considered the premier small business lending conference in Pennsylvania and the Mid-Atlantic region. This year approximately 200 commercial lenders and economic development practitioners attended the conference held at Seven Springs Mountain Resort.

SBDC Executive Director James Kunkel noted, “Saint Vincent College SBDC is very proud of the role it plays in the establishment and nurturing of entrepreneurial business ventures in our area. Small business is the backbone of the U.S. economy and is critical to our future economic well being. Our team does an exceptional job of bringing professional expertise and knowledge to the many hard-working entrepreneurs who routinely identify opportunities, take risks, make sacrifices, innovate, create jobs and help to improve our overall quality of life. It is truly rewarding that this year the U.S. Small Business Administration presented both of their Awards of Excellence to Saint Vincent College. It certainly demonstrates the value they place on our dedicated assistance to Westmoreland and Fayette County entrepreneurs and is very much appreciated.”

The Saint Vincent College Small Business Development Center (SBDC) was started by Saint Vincent College in 1984 to assist individuals starting and growing small businesses. The SBDC is a community outreach organization housed within the Alex G. McKenna School of Business, Economics, and Government. “The McKenna School is proud to have an SBDC that offers high-quality management consulting and cutting-edge business seminars,” said Dr. Gary Quinlivan, Dean of the McKenna School. “Our SBDC is devoted to business creation and expansion and that helps keep our local community strong.”

The Saint Vincent College SBDC provides no-fee confidential management consulting with an emphasis in strategic business planning, financial analysis and marketing. The SBDC also offers extensive educational programs developed for new and existing businesses. SBDC seminars and conferences provide up-to-date, practical information on a wide variety of business topics that teach business skills as well as more advanced and specialized management techniques. Educational programs feature experts and leaders from industry, government, higher education and professional associations.

The Saint Vincent College Small Business Development Center is part of a statewide system of university-based economic development organizations, whose mission is to provide high quality education, information and consulting to entrepreneurs to help them start and grow their businesses in the competitive global economy. For more information on SBDC services call 724-537-4572 or visit the SBDC homepage at www.stvincent.edu/sbdc.

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