| Platinum & Gold Partners |
Charleston Area Charitable Foundation
& Forsythe Family Farms
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| Silver Partners |
Agracel
Citizens National Bank
City of Charleston
City of Paris
The Cromwell Group, Inc.
East Central Illinois Development Corporation
Edgar County Bank
Effingham County Board
First Neighbor Bank
In Memory of Jack Clifford
Journal Gazette/Times Courier
Karen Wolters, Ignite, USA
Moultrie County Board
Paris Community Foundation
Paris First
U.S. Bank |
| Other Partners |
Charleston Area Chamber of Commerce
Eastern Illinois Education for Employment Systems
Flesor Family Confectionary, Inc.
Fifth Third Bank
Frank and Cathy Brummer
Greater Effingham Chamber of Commerce and Industry
Lake Land College Tech Prep
Lorenz Supply Company
PEDCO
Schultz Investment Company
State Bank of Arthur
Terwilliger Agency
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| Entrepreneurial Endeavors | Greetings!
"I wish to see Arabs considering brains as the energy that is worth investing in, as it will give a higher ROI than oil; I believe, it is our renewable energy!"
Fadi Ghandour, Chairman and CEO of Aramex
This quote spoke to me as a Coles County resident patiently awaiting FutureGen's arrival. We need to invest in both renewable energy sources - the brainpower of our citizenry and students, as well as the natural resources that are in the surrounding earth and sky. Thanks to all of the Business Solutions Center partners and volunteers who have invested in strengthening the brainpower, creativity, innovation and business acumen of the region. Listed below is your ROI (return on investment) for the past ten months.
139 clients counseled
20 start-ups
3 expansions
39 jobs created
9 loans
$735,000 of capital secured
500+ youths trained in entrepreneurship at 10 schools
244 youths trained with Junior Achievement
209 college students attended e-presentations
80 teachers trained in entrepreneurial education
This month we're offering Facebook and Twitter Training and have some helpful tax credit information. Meet some teen entrepreneurs from Clark County and learn about this month's new business. Enjoy the great weather, soak up the sun and dream big!
Jeanne
Jeanne Dau
Director
Business Solutions Center |
Social networking: Facebook, Twitter & Beyond Training (click here to see flyer)
8:30 am - noon
3041 Old Main
Eastern Illinois University
Charleston, IL 61920
Cost $35
Catch the wave of social networking and learn to use Facebook, Twitter and other social media tools. Through this Business Solutions Center workshop you can learn ways to get your personal, business or nonprofit message across to your intended audience. After attending this hands-on computer workshop, you will be able to create an effective online marketing strategy and determine possible uses for online tools for every age group. No social networking experience is needed. To sign up, click on the link: http://cats.eiu.edu/bscRegistration/workshops.asp
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 IRS Employee Tax Credits
Two new tax benefits are now available to employers hiring workers who were previously unemployed or only working part time. These provisions are part of the Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act enacted into law recently. Employers who hire unemployed workers this year (after Feb. 3, 2010 and before Jan. 1, 2011) may qualify for a 6.2% payroll tax incentive, in effect exempting them from their share of Social Security taxes on wages paid to these workers after March 18, 2010.
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Lauren's Paws-N-Claws
Business Solutions Center client Lauren Deters recently purchased her building in Neoga and is in "full-remodel" mode. Paws-N-Claws should be open over the next few weeks and will offer dog and cat grooming services and doggie day-care facilities as well as a wide variety of quality pet supplies.
 The business is conveniently located on the north curve in Neoga adjacent to Route 45 at 1086 North Railroad Street in the former Neoga Community Medical Center building. Lauren is dedicated to providing the highest quality of pet care, grooming and supplies and promises to give her clients' pets the same love and attention they receive at home. To contact Lauren call 217-821-0539. Congratulations and good luck with your new business, Lauren! |
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Meet Young Entrepreneurs in Clark County
Teens from Marshall and Casey took advice from regional teen entrepreneurs at the Youth Entrepreneurship Workshop held April 30th. David Orr of Fruper.com, Zac Workman of Punch Energy,Jessica Boyd and Jordan Hutton of The Flour Girls gave wonderful presentations about the challenges and opportunities they have experienced while starting their businesses. Students also created their own products made from four random pieces of junk and won prizes for their efforts. Thanks to the schools, Clark County Development Organization, Regional Office of Education, WIB #23, University of Illinois Extension - Clark County and Yargus Manufacturing for their sponsorship of this wonderful day.
Zac Workman is an Indiana University student who created Punch Energy Drink. |
Jessica Boyd and Jordan Hutton are the Flour Girls. They make beautiful cakes for all occasions. | |
Recruit a Child to Attend Camp e3
Now is the time to start identifying entrepreneurial, creative teens ages 14-18 that would like to learn more about starting a business and gain prize money and regional friends along the way.
Midland States Bank is sponsoring Camp e3 - energizing emerging entrepreneurs, a 3 1/2 day camp held at Eastern Illinois University July 11-14, 2010. Local entrepreneurs share their experience while EIU staff and students help facilitate a business pitch competition that answers the question, "If you had $50,000, what business would you start to make your community a better place?" The registration fee is $395 and includes: lodging, meals, t-shirt, recreation and all materials.
Sponsor a youth from your hometown. What a great gift for your child, grandchild or youth in your community. We can also work with the schools to help identify interested students. If you would like to provide a scholarship, please contact Jeanne at jcdau@eiu.edu or call 581-2913.
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Bob Oetting, left and Alan Singleton give information on how to limit liabilities through insurance and business structure at the April Consultant Connection Peer Networking luncheon. |
| Next Consultant Connection Peer Networking Luncheon June 3rd
Come join us for the next meeting of the Consultant Connection on Thursday, June 3rd at noon (location TBA). If you are a consultant, business owner or nonprofit that wants to learn from your peers on what works and what doesn't work, this is the meeting for you. The only fee is the price of your meal. Click here to register for the event by June 1st. |
 How to Start a Business Workshop
Learn where to begin to start your own business. The workshop is held at the following locations. Cost is $25.
Wednesday, June 16th - Mattoon Library 5:30 - 8 pm
Tuesday, August 31th - Shelbyville High School 6-9 pm
Thursday, Sept. 30th - Greater Effingham Chamber of Commerce 6-9 pm |
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Roadmap to Recovery: Convening on the Illinois Budget Crisis
Click link to go to website |
for the first 2010 Region-Wide Convening in partnership with the Donors Forum. Roadmap to Recovery: A Convening of Nonprofit Leaders on the Illinois Budget Crisis. Tuesday, May 11, 8AM-4PM at Hoogland Center for the Arts, 420 S. 6th Street, Springfield, FREE but limited seating. More. |
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Stan Thurman, BSC Counselor, "Hot Links"
http://www.managementhelp.org/
The Library provides easy-to-access, clutter-free, comprehensive resources regarding the leadership and management of yourself, other individuals, groups and organizations. Content is relevant to the vast majority of people, whether they are in large or small for-profit or nonprofit organizations. Over the past 15 years, the Library has grown to be one of the world's largest well-organized collections of these types of resources.
http://www.myfico.com/myfico/CreditCentral/LoanRates.aspx
The Loan Savings Calculator shows how FICOŽ scores impact the interest you pay on a loan. Select your loan type and state, enter the appropriate loan details and choose your current FICOŽ score range. You can see that working to get your score in the higher ranges can mean a big savings! |
| BSC Wins Constant Contact's All Star Award for Email Marketing
The Business Solutions Center received the Constant Contact's coveted All Star Email Marketing Award for 2009. This award is based on excelling in click rates, opens and response rates to emails/eblasts and surveys sent. Thank you for reading our emails. Without your interest, this award would not have been possible. |
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As always, if you have any questions or suggestions on how the BSC can assist entrepreneurs, please don't hesitate to call us at 581-2913.
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