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R.I. ranks 16th-worst in U.S. for minority entrepreneurs, study finds

PROVIDENCE – A recent report looking at state support for minority-owned businesses throughout the U.S. ranked Rhode Island the 16th-worst in the country for...

Not everyone is sold on McKee’s plan to boost MBE program

AFTER THE STATE last year exceeded the minimum requirements for awarding government contracts to minority- and women-owned businesses, Gov. Daniel J. McKee wants to...
CONCERNED CITIZEN: Rhode Island Black Business Association CEO and President Lisa Ranglin worries that efforts to improve access to and participation from minority businesses in Providence may go unnoticed with no one currently filling the role of business and development director for the city.
PBN FILE PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

Providence looks to improve its MBE contracting program

Leroy Belona thought certifying his Providence construction company through the state’s Minority Business Enterprise program would open the door to more ­opportunities. But in the...

Providence accelerator program graduates 100-plus microenterprises

PROVIDENCE – More than 100 microenterprises graduated from the Empower Providence Microenterprise Accelerator Program, a partnership between the city and internet domain registrar GoDaddy. The six-week...

R.I. Black Business Association celebrates new HQ, equity business hub

PROVIDENCE – State and local leaders joined Rhode Island Black Business Association founder, CEO and President Lisa Ranglin on Monday to celebrate the acquisition...

MBE program sees record-high participation, but advocates still skeptical

PROVIDENCE – After again falling short of mandated minimums for contracts and purchases with women and minority-owned businesses in fiscal 2021, the state rebounded...
TOMÁS ÁVILA TOOK OVER as associate director for the R.I. Office of Diversity, Equity and Opportunity last August. / PBN FILE PHOTO/MIKE SKORSKI

Is help on the way for R.I.’s Minority Business Enterprise program?

THE STATE IS STILL STRUGGLING to overcome decades of dysfunction around tracking and enforcing its laws for contracting with minority-owned businesses, even after a...
SETTING UP SHOP: Laura Guillén, the new Rhode Island executive director for Entrepreneurship for All, is forming a network of mentors and prospective program participants. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

Mass. business incubator arrives in Providence

Getting a business off the ground is no easy feat, especially for people of color. And if Rhode Island’s undersized share of minority-owned businesses is...
NEXT GEN: M&G Plumbing Supply Co. owner Richard Correia, left, speaks with stock clerk Alex Knowles. Correia is of Portuguese descent but sees no need to participate in the state Minority Business Enterprise program. His father, John, emigrated from the Azores and started in the business in the 1960s. / PBN PHOTO/MICHAEL SALERNO

WHO IS A MINORITY? Some argue R.I. needs to reexamine groups...

John Correia’s thick Azorean accent made him an easy target when he immigrated to Rhode Island in 1963. He was called a “greenhorn” and accused...
NEARLY 23% OF THE $103.8 million in contracts and purchase orders the city of Providence awarded in fiscal year 2020 went to certified women and minority businesses. / PBN FILE PHOTO/CHRIS BERGENHEIM

City, state have differing outcomes on minority contracting goal

While the state continues to fall short of its requirements for contracting with minority and women-owned businesses, the city of Providence has, for the...
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