Anisfield Partners with Non-profit Small Business Resource

Photo by Nicole Williams

A new opportunity has emerged for students in the Anisfield School of Business. Ramapo College has entered into a partnership with the New Jersey Small Business Development Center (NJSBDC), the Paramus Post reported.

“A lot of our students have their own aspirations about starting a small business,” said the Dean of Anisfield School of Business Lewis Chakrin. “We teach all aspects of business but what the New Jersey Small Business Development Center does is get down to the very tactical level, how does one go about starting a business…they specialize in small business and the tactics on how to do that, like how do I get a license in order to open a restaurant in Mahwah, what governmental and health agency approvals do I need, which banks are favorable for small businesses, what loans can I get, so it is at that very tactical level that they help students”.

The NJSBDC will get something out of this deal as well. The group will be opening an affiliate office at Ramapo’s Anisfield School of Business on the third floor. They will also have the ability to advertise their presence at Ramapo College. However, as Chakrin noted, “all of their seminars and courses they will offer will be available to the students at no charge."

The NJSBDC is a federal, state and educational partnership working as a non-profit and primarily funded by the U.S. Small Business Administration. Their goals, according to their official website, are as followed: “Provide unmatched customer service and personal commitment to the small business client with honest evaluations of client probability of success; bring high-value to the small business community; produce positive outcomes for entrepreneurs and established small businesses; serve communities and small businesses, facilitating economic development.”

“They specialize in helping entrepreneurs in starting a small business, to help them find the best way to start and continue the business,” said Chakrin.

The services they provide will be made available to everyone, inside and outside the Ramapo community, but only Ramapo College students will be able to access this abundance of resources for no charge.

The NJSBDC seems pleased with this arrangement. Brenda Hopper, CEO-State director, said to the Paramus Post, "It gives us a real presence in the northern area of Bergen County to allow small business owners and entrepreneurs located in that general region to have greater accessibility and proximity to counseling and training.”

According to Al Titone, the NJSBDC district office director, the partnership with ASB will be a benefit to everyone in Bergen County.

"This new satellite office at Ramapo College's Anisfield School of Business will serve a growing business population in this part of the county, and enhances our ability to provide additional small business assistance and services to entrepreneurs throughout Bergen County,” Titone said in a report on the NJSBDC website.

Chakrin shares this enthusiasm, stating, “It is very positive free advertising for the school, if you will, for the business school, the college in general, and it gives our students great opportunities for any interest they may have in starting their own small business.”

dirons@ramapo.edu