The Center for Urban and Entrepreneurship and Economic Development (CUEED), an organization at Rutgers Business School in Newark, NJ that educates, mentors, and supports small business owners in urban locales, presented its UnGala Experience at the Express Newark event space on Thursday, October 10 to celebrate its 10 year anniversary.  Donors at the UnGala Experience pledged sponsorship of over $110,000 to enable CUEED’s goal of serving 1,000 new urban entrepreneurs over the next 10 years.

“The generous donations that CUEED received at the UnGala will be used to provide more training programs, business coaching and financial counseling to local entrepreneurs, in addition to Rutgers students,” says Lyneir Richardson, Executive Director of CUEED.  “Over the next decade, we will expand our reach and help 1,000 urban entrepreneurs to focus on growth sectors, raising capital, and owning commercial property. Our goal is to help build businesses that will create jobs and invigorate urban communities. We’re grateful that our donors recognize the value and effectiveness of CUEED’s mission, and that they want the urban business owners who we support to prosper.”   

Organizations and individuals who provided financial support at the UnGala include Santander Bank, PNC Bank, Wells Fargo, Prudential Insurance, Chase Bank, the Surdna Foundation, Impact Consulting Enterprises, Columbia Bank, Royal Bank of Scotland, Kathryn Finney, Ben Hecht, Kristen Mozian, and BCT Partners.  CUEED is also seeking a benefactor to name the center, and will use funds that are raised to empower its work in four key areas:

●     Continuing CUEED’s Entrepreneurship Pioneers Initiative (EPI) program, which provides intensive classroom instruction for first generation urban business owners.

●     Extending capacity-building programs to serve urban entrepreneurs in the arts, technology, and retail/restaurant industries.

●     Making capital available to urban entrepreneurs through CUEED’s Banking and Financial Services Affinity Group and Angel Investment Fund for Black and Latino Technology entrepreneurs – both of which are new programs.

●     Using Rutgers’ academic and scholarly resources to devise new ways to bolster urban entrepreneurship and economic development.

“It was an honor to attend the UnGala and celebrate the 10^th anniversary of CUEED,” says Rep. Donald Payne Jr. (D-NJ).  “In 1969, my uncle founded the first and only African American-owned company in the country that manufactured computer forms.  Throughout his career, I saw firsthand the struggles that came with being an entrepreneur.  As a result, I want to make it easier for those who want to follow their dreams of opening their own businesses, so supporting CUEED’s mission is essential.  The CUEED model can be an example for the entire country of what’s possible when entrepreneurs, private capital, and academia come together to build companies, communities, and jobs.”

CUEED Fast Facts:

• CUEED is one of the first and only entities in the country to integrate academia, private capital, government organizations, and non-profit partners with the goal of stimulating economic growth through urban entrepreneurship.
• Through CUEED, Rutgers makes working space, equipment, faculty, staff, and student resources available to its participating local entrepreneurs, 70% of which are entrepreneurs of color and over 60% female.
• Since its inception in 2008, CUEED’s education, mentoring, and investment opportunities for urban entrepreneurs have helped them to create over 580 jobs in inner city locales and generate over $167MM in annual revenue. 

About The Center for Urban Entrepreneurship & Economic Development (CUEED)

The Rutgers University Center for Urban Entrepreneurship & Economic Development (CUEED) is the first center of its kind in the nation to integrate scholarly works with private capital, government, and non-profit sectors to develop citywide resources and bring renewed economic growth and vitality through urban entrepreneurship. We promote and foster a new generation of urban entrepreneurs who actively seek socially conscious urban renaissance.