Page 15 - Florida Sentinel 4-9-21

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HCC LIFE Names Youth Social Justice Essay Contest Winners
Ms. Faith Walker with parents, Roan and Sandra Walker, and Dr. Ken Ray, Jr., HCC Vice President of Student Services and Enrollment Management.
City Of Tampa, THAPgroup Partner To Accelerate East Tampa
Microbusiness Success
5508 Business Accelera- tor engages entrepreneurs with training opportunities
The City of Tampa and the Tampa-Hillsborough Action
Plan, Inc. (THAPgroup), have
partnered to provide mi-
crobusinesses with hours of
training through the 5508 ...CEO, THAPgroup Business Accelerator. The goal of the project is to accelerate revenue growth for microbusinesses and entrepreneurs living in and operating busi- nesses in East Tampa.
The development-centered program, which began in January 2021, is complimentary and al- lows entrepreneurs to attend virtual and in-per- son sessions covering growth topics with training by expert facilitators.
“We’re making the investment into small businesses to help them develop a competitive advantage that will allow them to be successful in today’s environment and beyond,” says THAP-
group’s CEO Derrick Blue. Training sessions continue through September 30, 2021 and will cover such topics as corporate and govern- ment procurement, capital access requirements, growth and operations planning, and virtual work solutions. “The business environment is shifting and transforming,” says Blue. “We want to help our small businesses be able to effectively respond to these changes.”
Entrepreneurs and microbusinesses can apply online to the 5508 Business Accelerator by visiting www.thapgroup.org/5508accelerator. They may also call the business office at 813-626- 4926 or visit 5508 North 50th Street, Suite #7, 33610, weekdays from 10 A. M. to 2 P. M.
About THAPgroup
The mission of the Tampa-Hillsborough Ac- tion Plan, Inc. (THAPgroup) is to offer solutions that build social equity by awakening a sense of dignity within Southwest Florida residents who face educational, health, housing, and economic challenges. Visit www.thapgroup.org.
DERRICK BLUE
Mr. Tracy Wertswith, his grandmother, Ms. Audrey Jackson, and Dr. Ken Ray, Jr., HCC Vice President of Student Services and Enroll- ment Management.
Hillsborough Community College Linking in Fellowship and Education (HCC LIFE), an outreach initiative to the faith-based community, part- nered with area churches to conduct a youth essay contest promoting social justice.
Throughout the year, the HCC LIFE team sponsors col- lege workshops and events and attends church-sponsored activities that support higher education. HCC LIFE work- shops include financial aid, college admissions, leader- ship, student success and oth- ers.
“The Church’s Role in So- cial Justice: Then & Now” was the middle and high school youth essay contest topic. The project was funded by the HCC Foundation and HCC Eq- uity Department and gra- ciously sponsored by Suncoast Credit Union, Wells Fargo and
Nielsen.
Essay judges from the local
community and HCC selected winners based on criteria such as grammar, understanding the topic and original think- ing.
The 2021 judges were Dr. Joan Holmes, retired HCC Diversity Officer; Dr. Idelia Phillips, President of Hills- borough County League of Women Voters: and Ms. Kara Lawson-Williamson, HCC history professor.
Congratulations to all con- test winners: Middle School First Place Winner: Ms. Faith Walker, First Baptist Church of College Hill; and High School First Place Win- ner: Mr. Tracy Wertswith, Beulah Baptist Institutional Church. The High School Sec- ond Place Winner was Ms. Claudia Fletcher, First Bap- tist Church West Tampa.
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