Savannah State University Partners with SCORE

By Savannah State University

Savannah State University’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (CIE), has partnered with SCORE, the nation’s largest network of volunteer, expert business mentors, to help students gain valuable skills in planning, launching and operating their own businesses. Six local business people from the SCORE network will mentor students throughout March culminating in a business pitch competition later this spring.

“We are grateful for the relationship with SCORE and the valuable expertise they are sharing with our students,” said Nicole Cannonier, Ph.D., Savannah State University’s associate professor of management. “It is an enriching partnership, one which provides students the one-on-one attention of a mentor and the resources to make business ownership a reality, even before they graduate.”

The highly-skilled SCORE team is organized with each mentor focused on a different business area including marketing and public relations, sales, operations, strategy and planning, business plan development and start-up assistance. The six professionals are listed below, along with their industry specialization:

• Jessica Belfry – Branding, employee relations, business acquisitions, environmentally-friendly business practices, budgeting and goal-setting
• Gia Boulos – Recruiting and operations, building diverse and inclusive teams
• Kewaan K. Drayton – Customer relations, and no cost/low-cost methods to jumpstart a business
• Valerie Reynolds – Increased workflow efficiency, market penetration, profit gains, and financial accountability
• Amy Shippy – Food and beverage entities, event planning, customer service, coaching, and sales
• Michelle Stenson – Financial goals, college funding, retirement, managing costs for extended periods of care and lifetime income strategies

The strategic collaboration with SCORE and the university’s partner organizations are pillars of the CIE’s programming, offered to increase business creation for African Americans and underrepresented entrepreneurs and innovators.