GRAND RAPIDS – In response to the record unemployment rates in Michigan, the Michigan Small Business and Technology Development Center and the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation are announcing the statewide expansion of a program offering training to displaced workers interested in starting a new business or retooling an existing business that is struggling in the current economy.

The program, called FastTrac NewVenture, aims to help dislocated workers evaluate business opportunities and develop an action plan for owning their own business.

COVERAGE DETAILS: The program, which is expected to train some 775 workers in Michigan this year, will be introduced in a June 17 news conference. The conference is at 1:30 p.m. in Room 138E in Grand Valley�??s DeVos Center, 401 Fulton St. Media parking is available in the Fulton Lot; TV trucks can park in the DeVos Lot. Previous participants in a pilot version of the program will be on hand to talk about their successes. The news conference will be followed by an information session for program participants from 2-4 p.m. Many of the participants are expected to be laid off General Motors employees. That session is open to news media coverage. Key individuals will also be available for one-on-one interviews.

The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is a private nonpartisan foundation that works to harness the power of entrepreneurship and innovation to grow economies and improve human welfare. Through its research and other initiatives, the Kauffman Foundation aims to open young people’s eyes to the possibility of entrepreneurship, promote entrepreneurship education, raise awareness of entrepreneurship-friendly policies, and find alternative pathways for the commercialization of new knowledge and technologies. Founded by late entrepreneur and philanthropist Ewing Marion Kauffman, the Foundation is based in Kansas City, Mo. and has approximately $2 billion in assets.

The Michigan Small Business & Technology Development Center provides counseling, training and advocacy for Michigan’s new business ventures, existing small businesses, expanding new businesses, new technology companies, and innovators. The MI-SBTDC is located at the Grand Valley State University Seidman College of Business in Grand Rapids, Michigan. As host of the MI-SBTDC State Headquarters, the Seidman College of Business oversees the twelve-region MI-SBTDC network. Entrepreneurs and small business owners may access the services of their nearest MI-SBTDC by visiting MISBTDC.Org

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