NC REAL is seeking a Project Coordinator to coordinate the Rural Home Healthcare Self-Employment Project, to assist in the implementation of additional REAL projects, primarily in Eastern North Carolina; and to assist NC REAL staff in the delivery of its core program activities. This is a 30 hours a week, grant-funded position. The Project Coordinator will primarily work out of a home office. Continue Reading…
We have several scholarships available for the upcoming NC REAL Institute and NC REAL Boomerang Institute. These scholarships are made possible by the NC General Assembly, to be eligible you must facilitate in the state of North Carolina.
Simply fill out the Scholarship Application available here and email it to laura@ncreal.org by April 30th to be considered. Continue Reading…
The BioNetwork BioBusiness Center and NC REAL are proud to sponsor training in the new REAL Sustainable Agriculture Entrepreneurship Curriculum
The training will be held at The BioNetwork BioBusiness Center located at AB Tech from 9:00 AM until 4:00 PM on May 11, 2010 in Room 128 of the Hayes Conference Center at the AB Tech campus in Enka. Lunch will be provided. Continue Reading…
Get a glimpse of the Ashe County camp through a YouTube video here
2009 was an exciting year for REAL Youth Entrepreneurship Summer Camps in North Carolina. There were 15 camps held across the state, with over 300 young people between the ages of 10 and 18 learning about entrepreneurship while having fun. At a REAL Entrepreneurship Camp, participants hear from local entrepreneurs, take part in hands-on activities to learn about assessing their community, assessing their own skills, and creating a business idea. Throughout the week they complete activities that stimulate creativity, and work in teams to complete a business plan including the marketing, financials, and operations. Continue Reading…
Mike Wilder / Times-News
2009-08-21 17:53:07
M.J. Simmons has made all-natural soap for 9 years. She’s given it away to friends, done word-of-mouth sales and sold it at farmers’ markets and craft shows. This fall, she’s jumping into a full-fledged business effort. She won’t do it alone. Simmons, who lives in southern Caswell County, will open a business in Burlington Outlet Village off Maple Avenue and Chapel Hill Road. As part of an entrepreneur class offered by Alamance Community College’s Small Business Center that received support from the outlet village, Simmons was picked to receive free retail space for one year. That will be on Plaza Drive in the outlet village, which is donating the space for that time. Continue Reading…
Jefferson Post
Friday, July 24, 2009
The Golden LEAF Foundation in 2007 funded the “Building REAL Interest in Developing Greater Entrepreneurial Systems” (BRIDGES) program through a $200,000 grant made to NC REAL Enterprises.
The grant, written through Wilkes Community College and the NWNC Advanced Materials Cluster, was to support the development of entrepreneurial skills in Ashe, Alleghany and Wilkes counties through working with teachers and youth. Continue Reading…
N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission
NC REAL (Rural Entrepreneurship through Action Learning) is pleased to announce the Regional Agribusiness Development Initiative, an exciting project funded by the N.C. Tobacco Trust Fund Commission. The overall goal of this project is to develop the capacity in the Upper Coastal Plain Region, a region historically dependent on the tobacco industry, to build the entrepreneurial skills of those who have lost jobs due to the decline in tobacco related industries. This increase in entrepreneurial skills will lead to the creation and expansion of more agricultural-based businesses throughout the region. Continue Reading…
Congratulations to the Regional Youth Business Plan Competition Winners!
1st Place: Phoenix Printworks
Alexandria Kilby – $750 College Scholarship
Willian Oliveira – $750 College Scholarship
Wilkes County
2nd Place: The Only Green Laundry System
Daniel Farmer – $500 College Scholarship
Dustin Roten – $500 College Scholarship
Ashe County
3rd Place: Renewable Clothing Inc.
Brittany Paisley – $500 College Scholarship
Ashe County Continue Reading…
PITTSBORO Central Carolina Community College has helped another group of budding entrepreneurs increase their chances of success in the business world.
Eleven students at the Chatham County Campus have completed the REAL program, (Rural Entrepreneurship through Action Learning). The culmination of this unique course was May 6, when they presented to the class the business plans they had developed. The plans included an online jewelry business, mobile biofuel, sustainable farms, biofuel manufacturing, clay studio and supply store, mixed media art, sculpture, grass-fed cattle farm and sustainable innovations. Continue Reading…
The NC REAL Institute will be held at The Meadowbrook Inn in Blowing Rock, NC from July 20-24, 2009. Register Now!
The NC REAL Boomerang Institute will be held at The Meadowbrook Inn in Blowing Rock, NC from July 22-24, 2009. Register Now!
More information Continue Reading…
Milele Archibald, director of ACC’s Small Business Center since 2002, was presented the Service to Mankind award by the Jack O’Kelley Sertoma Club on April 4. The highest honor Sertoma can bestow on a nonmember, the Service to Mankind Award honors outstanding volunteer service to the community. Continue Reading…
GATE- Growing America Through Entrepreneurship
Beginning in April 2009, rural North Carolinians who’ve lost their job through a layoff or plant closing will have an opportunity to explore possibilities for self-employment through Project GATE. Project GATE is being offered as a cooperative venture of the N.C. Department of Commerce, the N.C. Community College System – Small Business Center Network, the Employment Security Commission of North Carolina, North Carolina REAL Continue Reading…
Pictures from Alleghany County HS/WCC students in Annette Wagoner’s REAL Class. Continue Reading…
Over the past several months the Caldwell County Chamber of Commerce has worked as partners with Caldwell County Schools, CCC&TI, and Communities In Schools (CIS) to establish Business 101: A Blueprint for Student Success. Continue Reading…
Interested in learning how to launch your own business?
On top of that, would you like a chance at having rent-free retail space for a year?
Alamance Community College is offering a class designed to help people create a strong business plan and learn what they need to know to make it happen.
The college will offer the class beginning Jan. 26 through its Small Business Center. The class will meet from 6 to 9 p.m. each Monday for 10 weeks. Continue Reading…
SPINDALE (Nov. 4, 2008) – Eighteen budding entrepreneurs are ready to take a shot at the business world, thanks to a program of the Small Business Center at Isothermal Community College.
The students recently graduated from the North Carolina Rural Entrepreneurship Through Action Learning program, which is co-sponsored with the SBC by Foothills Connect Business and Technology Center and the Rutherford County Chamber of Commerce. Continue Reading…
“I learned a lot about business and what it takes but also while learning I made friends.”
Summer 2008 was a big year for REAL youth entrepreneurship camps in North Carolina. There were nine camps held across the state, with 160 young people between the ages of 10 and 18 learning about entrepreneurship and having a fun time in the process. At a REAL Entrepreneurship Camp, participants hear from local entrepreneurs, Continue Reading…
Dr. Tony E. Johnson has been named Executive Director of Rural Entrepreneurship through Action Learning (NC REAL). Johnson brings over 20 years experience leading entrepreneurial development initiatives in the public and not-for-profit arenas to the organization. Continue Reading…
By LARRY DALE Daily Courier Staff Writer
RUTHERFORDTON — Entrepreneurship and small business creation are the main focuses of NC REAL, and Angie Grohwin’s business is one of the program’s success stories. Grohwin opened The Coffee Place in May 2007. This June, she moved the shop to a larger facility next to the courthouse. Continue Reading…
The 2008 REAL Entrepreneurship Curriculum is now available for purchase! Continue Reading…
Ms. Rose Orange competed in the Business Plan Competition and placed 4th in the Nation! Rose presented her own business plan for her new business Topiary Rose. Rose competed and placed higher than several major universities, including Arizona State University, and Virginia Tech. Rose previously won 1st place in North Carolina at the State PBL competition. Continue Reading…
Charlotte chefs and Rutherford County farmers talked face to face on county land Monday.The meetings were set up by Foothills Connect Business & Technology Center, located on North Main Street. Continue Reading…
February 23 – March 1, 2008 was National Entrepreneurship Week. Schools, colleges and organizations around the country held events to celebrate entrepreneurship and to support the goals and ideals of entrepreneurship in America. Continue Reading…
Haywood Community College (North Carolina) Office Systems Technology Instructor, Joseph Fox, recently presented his research paper entitled _The Community College System: Economic Development Through Collaborative Efforts Continue Reading…
REAL Entrepreneurship has been used with survivors of the December 26 tsunami that disrupted or destroyed the lives and businesses of tens of thousands of people in southern Thailand. To assist the medium-term recovery of these people, KIAsia organized its Tsunami Recovery Action Initiative (TRAI). This program focuses on the recovery of small businesses and the restoration of livelihoods devastated by the disaster. Continue Reading…
Spanish REAL will be included in an upcoming publication from the RUPRI Center for Rural Entrepreneurship as an example of how entrepreneurship is being nurtured and energized in many rural places across America Continue Reading…
When a customer places an order at Jody Argote’s mobile crepe stand, he may not realize that he’s getting more than a meal. He’s also in for an interactive experience. Continue Reading…
REAL Enterprises is to develop Liberty Middle School NC REAL (Rural Entrepreneurship through Action Learning) students had an exciting year. Our class of 14 students created a school-based business to help raise money for our school. Continue Reading…
There are hundreds of successful entrepreneurs who start or expand businesses in your communities because of you and REAL Entrepreneurship. There are great stories about high school and middle school youth participating in community entrepreneurial activities, starting part time businesses or using REAL skills in some unique way. Make it a point to send us at least ONE article in the quarter for the REALTalk newsletter. This is a great way to promote your REAL graduates and your program across the state. It’s simple. Just email us at laura@ncreal.org