Foster Consulting and Business Development Center Celebrates 20 Years, 100,000 Jobs

The Consulting and Business Development Center at the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business celebrated its 20th anniversary in December. The celebration drew more than 650 people and a record $90,000 was donated to build the center’s program endowments. Launched in 1995 with the mission of accelerating student careers and growing businesses in under-served communities, the Consulting and Business Development Center has helped to create more than 100,000 jobs since its inception.

Actor, director and comedian Cheech Marin kicked off the celebration. He spoke about the importance of growing educational and business opportunities for a broad range of people and complimented the Foster School for its foresight in launching the center. The center’s many achievements include creating the nation’s first endowed scholarship for Latino MBA students and establishing the Foster School’s first endowed scholarships for African-American MBAs and undergraduates, as well as Asian Pacific Islander undergraduates.

The center has an impressive history. In 2015 alone, 350 students and a dozen faculty members worked with 100 small business and non-profits to help grow their revenues by $8.9 million, or 10 percent, according to a news article. The Consulting and Business Development Center takes business education out of the classroom and puts it to work in communities across Washington. Students provide valuable consulting to small businesses and non-profit organizations in under-served communities while business owners and non-profit leaders gain access to business education that creates jobs and changes lives.

The center’s real impact is on individual lives. “It’s honestly really difficult to put into words what the center has meant for me,” Raychael Jensen, deputy of strategy and special projects at Harlem Children’s Zone in New York City, said in a statement. “It has been such a huge part of my experience here at the University of Washington and at the business school that I literally can’t imagine my experience as a student or as an alumni without the center. The center matters because it has a transformative impact on the lives of students and businesses.”

regions: Seattle

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