This month the Alabama Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at The University of Alabama in Huntsville (UAH) celebrated SBDC Day 2024 on March 20 by highlighting the success of its mission to support emerging and established businesses statewide. The UAH SBDC is serving seven counties in Northeastern Alabama and beyond, helping to create opportunities for small business by providing expert advice, training and resources to level the playing field with larger competitors. The Alabama SBDC at UAH, a part of the University of Alabama System, provided one-on-one assistance to 417 clients this past year, and over 4,700 attendees participated in SBDC training events statewide in 2023.
"As an SBA Resource Partner, America’s SBDCs across the nation contributes significantly to the success of new business and new job creation,” says Regional Director, UAH SBDC/APEX Accelerator, Hilary Claybourne. “Our UAH SBDC/APEX Accelerator delivers on the return on investment of the federal dollars sent to assist our business community with business advising and professional development opportunities at no cost. We love what we do, helping our business community to succeed. It is an honor to serve to our local community ‘Growing our economy, one small business at a time!”
Courtesy Alabama SBDC
America’s Small Business Development Centers comprise the largest and most comprehensive network supporting the entrepreneurial ecosystem with over 1,000 SBDCs nationwide and 10 in the state of Alabama. The theme for SBDC Day 2024 is “Nurturing Dreams. Growing Futures.” The event unites the hundreds of thousands of clients they serve. According to the Small Business Administration (SBA), “Small businesses generate 1.5 million jobs a year and account for 64% of new jobs in America. Small businesses also contribute 44% of the U.S. economic activity, so as the number of new businesses grows so does their economic contributions.”
In addition, APEX Accelerators (APEX) act as the bridge between small businesses and government contracting on the local, state and federal levels. SBDC advisors offer confidential business advising and professional development services at no cost to clients, funded in part by the SBA and Department of Defense.
“Our Centers work closely with other economic development agencies, chambers of commerce and are affiliated with UAH,” Claybourne notes. “The UAH SBDC/APEX Accelerator is a regional office serving Madison, Marshall, Morgan, Limestone, DeKalb Cullman and Jackson Counties in Northeast Alabama. We assist small business owners through all phases of the business lifecycle including workforce needs, technical solutions and internships.”
To register for UAH SBDC no-cost services, visit Alabama SBDC Network, and to learn more about upcoming training/events, such as the upcoming “How to Start a Business” class, see SBDC Events .
