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New Jersey Lieutenant Governor Tahesha Way praised William Paterson University’s Small Business Development Center (SBDC) during a women’s equity conference it hosted on campus last week. Close to 200 women from across northern New Jersey—established and aspiring entrepreneurs—attended.
This year alone, New Jersey’s SBDC at William Paterson University served 700 businesses, 356 of which are women-owned.
“The work you do here is transformative, not just for individual entrepreneurs and small businesses, but also for the communities and industries where these businesses operate and thrive,” Lt. Gov Way said during her keynote speech. With more than 900,000 small businesses across the state—and growing rates of women owning or leading them—New Jersey’s SBDCs “play a critical role” in our state’s business landscape, she added.
The Passaic County regional NJSBDC hub is housed within William Paterson’s Cotsakos College of Business. Professional management consultants provide a variety of educational and business resources to counsel and train small business owners to finance, market, and manage their companies.
In addition to a keynote address from the lieutenant governor, the conference included a business expo, networking opportunities, a panel discussion on empowering women in leadership—comprised of high-ranking women leaders from various industries—and a presentation on women’s GDP by Cathy Callahan, Business Banking Northeast Regional Executive for Bank of America.
“We believe every woman with a dream has the potential to be a powerful force in the business world,” said Melissa Rosario, regional director of the NJSBDC at William Paterson University, to the conference attendees. “Your courage to take that first step and your determination to persevere will pave the way for a brighter future, not just for yourself but for countless other who will be inspired by your success. We look forward to supporting you.”
The University’s Chief Diversity Officer, Dr. Jeanne Arnold, pointed out that “women’s equality is very much a part of William Paterson University’s DNA,” and she cited the high rates of women in leadership roles on campus, from vice presidents to deans, as well as the active campus chapter of ACE-Net, a women’s leadership network.
Lt. Governor Way, a mother to four daughters, is the former President of the Women Empowered Democratic Organization of Passaic County and served on the Board of Directors for the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, a leading national think tank geared towards advancing dialogue and policy for improving women’s lives and their families.
The highest-ranking woman in state government, Way’s team is 100 percent female.
“Every day, I am proud to be in the room where decisions are made. More importantly, I am able to help decide who else gets to be in that room, and that’s where the influence of women’s leadership truly comes into play,” Way said. “It is important that we seek to include authentic, diverse voices of women to make those choices—not because it looks good, but because we all benefit when our teams reflect the diverse life experiences of our society.”
To learn more about the services offered at the William Paterson location of the NJSBD—which include but are not limited to: help with registering a business name, getting a tax identification number, applying for business grants and loans, and becoming an LLC—visit sbdcwpu.com, call 973-321-1378, or email SBDC@wpunj.edu.
08/20/24
