UT Tyler Office of Marketing and Communications

UT Tyler to Offer Entrepreneurial Training in Longview

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October 4, 2019

Media Contact: Beverley Golden
Senior Director of Media Relations
Marketing and Communications
The University of Texas at Tyler
903.566.7303

The University of Texas at Tyler has announced that the Kauffman FastTrac course for aspiring entrepreneurs and new businesses will be offered Nov. 7, 2019, through Feb. 6, 2020, at the UT Tyler Longview University Center.

The non-credit course is offered by the UT Tyler Soules College of Business Entrepreneurship and Innovation Institute and consists of 10 sessions to be held 6—9 p.m. Thursdays. It will provide entrepreneurs information, exercises and tools for starting and growing a successful business. Chuck Vanderbilt, regional lending manager for the East Texas Council of Governments, will facilitate the course along with several guest speaker professionals.

"The University of Texas at Tyler welcomes every opportunity to encourage and support entrepreneurs in the Longview-Gregg County community and throughout East Texas,'' said Richard King, interim director of the Entrepreneurship and Innovation Institute. "Kauffman FastTrac is a nationally known program that is being offered in East Texas for the first time. It will provide in-depth training to help entrepreneurs refine and implement their business ideas and reach their full potential.''
Topics will include aligning business concepts with real market opportunities, determining a target market and competitive advantage, defining a company's brand and marketing, setting realistic financial goals, managing business functions and more.

The course fee is $199, due to grant and sponsorship support. A further cost reduction comes in the form of a refund that will be given to those who attend seven of the 10 sessions and submit an executive summary of their plan at the end of the program. Sponsors include Bank of Austin, Bancorp South, Southside Bank, VeraBank, Longview Economic Development Council, Kilgore Economic Development Council and UT Tyler Small Business Development Center in Longview.

Preference for participation will be given to entrepreneurs who have a clear concept for a new business and want to start within the next six to 12 months, and to start-up businesses that have been in operation less than two years and want to develop a plan for increased sales and profit.

For more information or to apply for the course, visit uttyler.edu/entrepreneurship-center.

The Entrepreneurship and Innovation Institute serves as the focal point of entrepreneurship education, research and outreach within the UT Tyler Soules College of Business. The institute supports entrepreneurs and innovators outside the university by providing programs and business expertise necessary to bring product ideas and businesses to market and grow existing businesses.

A member of the prestigious UT System, The University of Texas at Tyler focuses on student success and innovative research in the more than 80 undergraduate and graduate degree programs offered to nearly 10,000 students. Classified by Carnegie as a doctoral research institution and by U.S. News as a national university, UT Tyler has campuses in Tyler, Longview, Palestine and Houston.