Morgan State launches regional hub for Black entrepreneurship

BALTIMORE — Morgan State University has officially launched a new business hub in partnership with the PNC Foundation.  The hub aims to provide the Black community with the resources and education needed to start and sustain their own businesses.

The center will help students of historically Black colleges and universities make their entrepreneurial dreams a reality.

The launch of the business hub coincided with a pop-up market organized by students on campus. The event aimed to spark entrepreneurial spirit by providing students and community members with the opportunity to showcase their business skills.

Dr. Mary Foster, a business professor at Morgan State University, emphasized the importance of providing resources to reduce disparities for Black entrepreneurs. 

"There are many rich resources already out there, so we want to not reinvent the wheel, not duplicate things. We want to create new things that are needed to help reduce those disparities for Black entrepreneurs."

Cierra Jones, a West Baltimore native and owner of Noble Gems Community Health Services, recently completed a program as part of the collaboration. She believes the resources and relationships provided through the hub are invaluable.

"It's deeper than a Google search, it's deeper than what you can find in a dictionary or encyclopedia, right, or even a newspaper, but it's about having access directly handed to you or having those direct relationships with the most important people that can bring you those resources and direct you to the right opportunity,"  Jones said.  

Morgan State along with its HBCU partners and the PNC foundation will hold an inaugural conference for Black entrepreneurship, June 14-16th in Washington, DC.