In the past year, two MCITy partners, MSU’s e-Center and the Vicksburg-Warren Chamber of Commerce, have provided direct assistance to 60 small businesses ranging from startup capital to acceleration and growth. These MCITy partners provided training on entrepreneurship, business plan development, customer engagement, marketing, human capital, and product alignment. Pitch contests were held with participants from across the region. Winners of these contests received startup grants to support their activities. MCITy partner ERDCWERX provided the gateway for entrepreneurs to evaluate and license dozens of patents from the US Army Engineer Research and Development Center (headquartered here with MCITy in Vicksburg, MS). MCITy was also an unparalleled resource for information on Small Business Innovation Research and Small Business Technology Transfer programs – federal seed programs essential to small business development.
