WAVERLE MELISSA. ALL RIGHT. THANKS, SAMANTHA. SO IF YOU’RE LOOKING TO START A NEW BUSINESS IN THE NEW YEAR, WE’RE GETTING THE FACTS ON ONE OF THE FASTEST WAYS TO LEARN THE INS AND OUTS. METRO COMMUNITY COLLEGE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER IS HELPING PEOPLE PUT THE IDEAS INTO PRACTICE. IT IS REALLY IMPORTANT TO HELP SMALL BUSINESSES IN NEBRASKA, AND HERE’S WHY. 99% OF THE BUSINESSES HERE IN NEBRASKA ARE SMALL BUSINESSES. THAT’S A BIG NUMBER. WE WANT TO BRING THE COMMUNITY OF SMALL BUSINESSES TOGETHER, BUT ALSO MAKE SURE THAT THEY HAVE WHAT THEY NEED. KETV TOOK YOU INSIDE MCACY BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER IN AUGUST BEFORE IT OFFICIALLY LAUNCHED. DOCTOR MARLA ASH IS EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR. IN THESE FIRST FEW MONTHS OF OPENING, ASH SAYS THE CENTER HELPED MORE THAN 20 ENTREPRENEURS, GIVING THEM A SAFE SPACE THAT THEY CAN BE VULNERABLE ENOUGH TO SAY, I DON’T KNOW, BUT HAVE THE GUIDANCE. IT WAS LIKE ONE OF THE BEST OPPORTUNITIES I’VE GOTTEN MY WHOLE LIFE, SHANIA JONES HILL HAS DREAMS TO START HER OWN MOBILE NAIL SERVICE. THIS SHAPE IS PRETTY COMMON. LIKE AN ALMOND SHAPE. SHE COMES TO THE BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER TO NETWORK WITH ME. BEING ABLE TO HAVE THE RESOURCES TO CONTACT ANYONE AND THE ENTREPRENEURS AND JUST THE PROGRAM IN GENERAL. I KNOW THAT GAVE ME THE, AS I SAY, THE FOOT IN THE DOOR TO HAVE THAT ACCESS. IT’S ACCESS YOU CAN HAVE WITHOUT GETTING A BUSINESS DEGREE. IT’S MORE LIKE I HAVE IDEAS AND WAYS TO GROW MY BUSINESS, BUT I DON’T HAVE THE CONFIDENCE TO DO IT. WE SPOKE TO ASHLEY STRONG OVER ZOOM. SHE STARTED HER GYMNASTICS AND AFTER SCHOOL PROGRAM IN CHADRON WITH THE HELP OF MCC’S BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER. I HAD A BUSINESS PLAN AND I KNEW WHAT I WANTED TO DO, BUT I WAS I DIDN’T KNOW HOW TO APPROACH THE FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS. I DIDN’T KNOW HOW TO GO TO THE BANK. STRONG KNOWS GYMNASTICS AND SHE KNOWS KIDS, BUT SHE DOESN’T KNOW ALL THE INS AND OUTS OF GROWING A BUSINESS. BUT SHE WILL SOON. DIDN’T THINK I COULD DO THIS, AND I DID. AND IT’S BEEN SO MUCH EASIER THAN I THOUGHT IT WOULD BE. AND FOR MORE INFORMATION, YOU CAN REACH OUT TO METRO COMMUNITY COLLEGE. SEVERAL DIFFERENT PROGRAMS THERE TO HELP PEOPLE BOOST THEIR. YEAH, THAT’S AN INTERESTING STATISTIC. THE 99% ARE SMALL BUSINESSES. AND FOR PEOPLE WH
Nebraska’s MCC Business Development Center supports local entrepreneurs
New business in the new year? Try MCC’s Business Development Center
Updated: 7:46 AM CST Jan 6, 2026
Editorial Standards
Metro Community College’s Business Development Center is helping Nebraska’s small business owners by providing essential resources and support to over 20 entrepreneurs since its launch. Dr. Marla Ashe, the executive director of the center, highlighted the significance of small businesses in the state, stating, “99 percent of the businesses here in Nebraska are small businesses, that’s a big number.” She added, “We want to bring the community of the small businesses together but also make sure they have what they need.”The center offers a safe space for entrepreneurs to express uncertainties and receive guidance. “Giving them the safe space to be able to say I don’t know, but then have the guidance,” Ashe said.Chy’Naia Jones-Hill, who aspires to start her own mobile nail service, described the center as “one of the best opportunities I’ve gotten in my whole life.” She uses the center to network and gain access to valuable resources, saying, “With me being able to have the right resources to contact, entrepreneurs, that gave me the foot in the door to have that access.”Ashley Strong, who started Panhandle Gymnastics and an after-school program in Chadron with the center’s help, shared her experience. “It’s like I have ideas on ways to grow my business, but I don’t have the confidence to do that,” she said. Strong had a business plan but lacked knowledge on approaching financial institutions. “I had a business plan and I knew what I wanted to do but I didn’t know how to approach the financial institutions or how to go to the banks,” she explained. Despite her initial doubts, Strong found the process more manageable than expected. “I didn’t think I could do this and I did, and it’s been so much easier than I thought it would be,” she said.
Metro Community College’s Business Development Center is helping Nebraska’s small business owners by providing essential resources and support to over 20 entrepreneurs since its launch. Dr. Marla Ashe, the executive director of the center, highlighted the significance of small businesses in the state, stating, “99 percent of the businesses here in Nebraska are small businesses, that’s a big number.” She added, “We want to bring the community of the small businesses together but also make sure they have what they need.”
The center offers a safe space for entrepreneurs to express uncertainties and receive guidance. “Giving them the safe space to be able to say I don’t know, but then have the guidance,” Ashe said.
Chy’Naia Jones-Hill, who aspires to start her own mobile nail service, described the center as “one of the best opportunities I’ve gotten in my whole life.” She uses the center to network and gain access to valuable resources, saying, “With me being able to have the right resources to contact, entrepreneurs, that gave me the foot in the door to have that access.”
Ashley Strong, who started Panhandle Gymnastics and an after-school program in Chadron with the center’s help, shared her experience. “It’s like I have ideas on ways to grow my business, but I don’t have the confidence to do that,” she said. Strong had a business plan but lacked knowledge on approaching financial institutions. “I had a business plan and I knew what I wanted to do but I didn’t know how to approach the financial institutions or how to go to the banks,” she explained. Despite her initial doubts, Strong found the process more manageable than expected. “I didn’t think I could do this and I did, and it’s been so much easier than I thought it would be,” she said.
