College seminar focuses on starting a small business

The Kilgore College Small Business Development Center (SBDC), a partnership program with the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA), has teamed-up with Sam's Club and several area lending institutions to offer East Texas entrepreneurs an eight-week course entitled, "How to Start and Operate a Business in East Texas."

This course will be offered from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Thursday evenings, September 28 through November 16 at Kilgore College-Longview (Joe M. Hendrix Center), Room 107, located at 300 South High Street in Longview. A certificate of completion will be presented to each student completing all eight classes. The course has been approved for 16 hours of Continuing Education Unit (CEU) credit.

This course will cover eight (8) separate sections on the proper operation of a business, which includes a variety of topics important to small business start-ups and existing businesses. From making the initial decision to start a business, to planning for company tax savings, this course will help with opening a business, as well as keeping that business running as efficiently as possible.

The course will be presented in a weekly, step by step, practical approach to business as opposed to a theoretical or academic approach, with the small business owner and potential owner in mind. Material covered each week will later be included in the different sections of a business plan.

Scholarships have been provided by Texas Bank and Trust, Regions Bank, BancorpSouth, City National Bank, Sam's Club-Longview, Austin Bank, Southwest Bank, Citizens Bank-Kilgore and CapitalOne.

Tuition for the course is $99 which includes a 298-page entrepreneurial startup guide, eight (8) weeks of instruction and all course materials. Seating is limited and early registration is recommended.

To register and to receive more information on this and other upcoming small business courses, call the SBDC at (903) 757-5857 or outside the Longview area call (800) 3387232.