Black MBA - Winter 2007/2008 - (Page 17) ENTREPRENEUR PROGRAM OPENS IN HOUSTON, AUSTIN, PHOENIX AND TORONTO THE ENTREPRENEURS’ ORGANIZATION (EO), made up of 6,400 members in more than 40 countries, has picked Houston, Tex.; Austin, Tex.; Phoenix, Ariz.; and Toronto, Canada, as locations to launch its “Accelerator” program. The program is designed to help new entrepreneurs build up their businesses to more than $1 million in annual sales, and consists of quarterly one-day learning sessions t h at emph a si ze compet it ive adva nt age, guerilla marketing and the sales process. In addition, the course will give participants in each city the chance to interact with and learn from EO Chapter members teaching courses in other cities. The “Accelerator” program kicked off November 15. Supported by Mercedes-Benz Financial and currently in its second year, the program has a 13 percent success rate so far, with 20 participants reaching their $1 million annual sales objectives. Last year’s programs were held in 10 cities, including Boston, Mass.; Los Angeles, Calif.; and New York, NY. –www.bizjournals.com UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AWARDED GRANT TO ESTABLISH MINORITY HEALTH CENTER THE UNIVERSITY OF Pittsburgh announced November 12 that it was awarded a five-year $4.8 million grant from the National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities to organize a minority health disparity research center. The university’s Graduate School of Public Health is currently making plans to launch the center, which will be called the Research Center of Excellence in Minority Health Disparities. The center will be used to encourage better health care among African Americans and once it opens, its researchnd research ers will begin studying the lifestyles of 100 African American families, venturing into their homes and helping them live more healthily. The grant also calls for researchers to perform a mental health h study that finds ways s to prevent the onset of f mental illnesses like e depression in African Americans with diabetes and cardiovascular A i ith di b t d di l disease. –www.medicalnewstoday.com ENTERTAINMENT ENTREPRENEUR RUSSELL SIMMONS LAUNCHES MEDIA WEB SITE S INCE 2005, Internet use among African Americans has tripled, and entertainment entrepreneurs Russell Simmons and Navarrow Wright launched Global Grind (www.globalgrind.com) in September to appeal to this growing audience. Backed by Simmons’ Island Def Jam Music Group and Facebook investor Accel Ventures, Global Grind features music, news and culture relevant to hip-hop fans. Because more than 40 percent of African Americans now have highspeed connections at home, Global Grind integrates MP3s and allows users to import and upload YouTube videos and images from Flickr, Yahoo!’s photo-sharing site. Other hip-hop related Web sites include DanceJam, a dance-oriented video Web site created by Stanley Burrell (rapper MC Hammer), and BlockSavvy.com, an invitationonly site that lets users create virtual 3D rooms showcasing their favorite movies, music and art. BlockSavvy.com currently has more than 10,000 members. –www.businessweek.com BlackMBA • Winter 2007/2008 17 http://www.bizjournals.com http://www.medicalnewstoday.com http://www.globalgrind.com http://BlockSavvy.com http://BlockSavvy.com http://www.businessweek.com
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