Contact: Ann Hatch
214-378-1819;
ahatch@dcccd.edu
For immediate release — Oct. 27, 2014
(DALLAS) — When area businesses in Dallas need a boost, they turn to the Bill J. Priest Institute for Economic Development, which has provided training, workforce development assistance and a business incubator for entrepreneurs who have needed help starting their own businesses and area employers who want well-trained employees.
The Bill J. Priest Institute for Economic Development, a campus of El Centro College, is named to honor the first chancellor of the Dallas County Community College District, Dr. Bill J. Priest.
The institute will mark 25 years of service to the business community on Thursday, Nov. 6, with a come-and-go open house from 1:30 to 3:30 p.m. as part of its silver anniversary celebration. The day will feature tours and a “Passport to Priest” activity in which visitors can get a “Priest Passport,” visit each department to learn more about what the institute offers students and business owners, have their “passports” stamped and earn prizes.
Light refreshments will be served, and the general public is invited to attend. Free parking is available on site or near the campus, which is located at 1402 Corinth St. in Dallas.
Most recently, the Bill J. Priest Institute became home to the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program for the Dallas area. As new business owners take modules (classes) and learn how to build their businesses through that initiative, almost 350 others preceded them as clients with the Bill J. Priest Institute’s business incubator, which started in 1990. Students have taken a variety of courses to prepare them for careers in the workforce, and grants from the Texas Workforce Commission and other organizations and agencies have provided funds for the training offered through the institute, too.
“The 25th anniversary of the Bill J. Priest Institute for Economic Development marks a long and productive relationship with the Dallas business community,” said Dr. Joe May, chancellor of the Dallas County Community College District. “Our emphasis on student success and jobs is reflected in the history and service of the institute. We look forward to many more years of helping business owners grow and providing them with employees — our students — who are well trained to fill the current and evolving jobs in this changing economic climate.”
El Centro’s new president, Dr. Jose Adames, said, “Everyone is welcome when they enter the impressive teaching and learning environment at the Bill Priest Institute. It will continue to serve as the premier workforce and business professional development center for Dallas and the region.”
The institute has been the home of the North Texas Small Business Development Center and has been awarded a number of grants that support area businesses and students. By the end of August 2014, BJP had been awarded nearly $3.5 million in funds for efforts including the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses program, the Walmart Pathways project, Skills for Small Business with JPMorgan Chase, as well as training grants for AT&T Phase III, Healthcare Innovator, TEAM, GEMS and others.
In addition to the Goldman Sachs 10K program, welding/industrial maintenance training, business incubation opportunities and work with the North Texas SBDC, the institute is involved with NPower, a nationally recognized nonprofit organization that serves veterans ages 21 to 40 who want to transfer their military experience and develop new skills in the field of technology.
“We are proud of our continuing partnership with the North Texas SBDC, and the institute has had exceptional success garnering millions of dollars in grants over the years,” said Dr. Pyeper Wilkins, associate vice president of planning, research and institutional effectiveness at El Centro College.
She added, “The welding/industrial maintenance program we offer is the most technologically advanced in the state — perhaps nationally — because we have been able to purchase state-of-the art equipment with grants awarded over the past few years.”
BJP provides evening and weekend classes in welding and industrial maintenance, and it offers a forklift operator certification program, GED practice testing and coaching, expanded contextualized Adult Basic Education training, Six Sigma and business process management, and many other opportunities to students, with classes that meet their diverse schedules and needs. BJP provides consultation services and customized training for local businesses as well, and its Business Incubation Center offers emerging small companies an opportunity to operate by leasing office space and receiving business services for up to four years.
Adames added, “We obviously have many accomplishments to celebrate as we mark the 25th anniversary of the Bill J. Priest Institute for Economic Development at El Centro College. The future holds great promise for the expanded role the BJP campus will play as we help meet the educational, training and economic needs of the people we serve.”
For more information, contact Sandra Mitchell by email at
Sandra.Mitchell@dcccd.edu. The institute’s general number is (214) 860-5900.
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