The Arkansas Small Business and Technology Development Center at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock has received a $2 million federal grant to help underserved and very small businesses apply for federal funding.
The five-year grant will help the center assist hundreds of the state’s smallest businesses with securing capital through the U.S. Treasury’s Technical Assistance Grant Program, part of the Treasury’s State Small Business Credit Initiative, the university said in a news release. Under the program, which received $200 million in funding from the American Rescue Plan Act, very small businesses are defined as businesses with fewer than 10 employees. That includes independent contractors and sole proprietors.
The program defines underserved businesses as those in historically underserved communities, as well as socially and economically disadvantaged entrepreneurs who may have lacked the support needed to pursue their business goals.
Consultants with ASBTDC will work one-on-one with businesses who want to apply for funding, loans or other financing, according to the release. The center will hold in-person and online training events. Consulting services and training are both offered free of charge.
The center expects to train 750 small businesses over five years and provide individual consulting to 875 business owners, resulting in at least 230 applications to the state’s capital programs. Training will cover legal, accounting and financial topics such as business bookkeeping, legal structures and the capital acquisition process. The first training event is set for March 28.
The ASBTDC was picked to implement the grant program in Arkansas at the recommendation of the Arkansas Development Finance Authority.
“The ASBTDC is the perfect organization to lead the technical assistance piece of the SSBCI program in Arkansas,” Mark Conine, president of ADFA, said in a statement. “The ASBTDC’s commitment and track record of supporting businesses across Arkansas in various sectors and stages of development is outstanding.”
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