Miami students to team up with local Latino-owned businesses
Austin Sweeney
Issue date: 4/29/08 Section: Campus
Reading, who began working with La Voz through the Wilks Scholar program, found out firsthand that there are many Latino entrepreneurs who have a positive impact on both the economy and community of Hamilton.
Seeing this made her want to change peoples' negative perceptions about Latinos. This motivated her to start working on the Partners for Change program.
La Voz will be responsible for finding the businesses that Miami students will partner with, according to Reading.
This service learning-based venture has two primary objectives, according to Reading.
"We want a partnership that offers Latino small-business owners the opportunity to partner with young eager college students to teach them about real-life business practices," Reading said.
Reading said the second objective is to give students the opportunity to apply their classroom knowledge to help empower the small-businesses.
The initiative will allow Miami students to learn from the business owners and visa versa, according to Reading.
Most of the Latino owned small businesses have insufficient automation and technology, or do not know how to properly use it, Miami Hamilton Spanish and Portuguese professor Shelly Bromberg said.
And according to Bromberg, this is an area in which Miami students should really be able to help the small-business owners. Bromberg also works with the Wilks Scholar program and has collaborated with Reading in her efforts.
The small Latino businesses are typically restaurants or grocery stores that really need support, according to Bromberg. Bromberg said this need for support and empowerment come from the negative Latino sentiments and a lack of support from the Chamber of Commerce.
Bromberg said that after putting so much time into planning Partners for Change the expectations are high.
"(But) even if it doesn't get past a pilot, it's still been a success," Bromberg said.
However, Bromberg feels that the program will get past its pilot and be around for a while.
Seeing this made her want to change peoples' negative perceptions about Latinos. This motivated her to start working on the Partners for Change program.
La Voz will be responsible for finding the businesses that Miami students will partner with, according to Reading.
This service learning-based venture has two primary objectives, according to Reading.
"We want a partnership that offers Latino small-business owners the opportunity to partner with young eager college students to teach them about real-life business practices," Reading said.
Reading said the second objective is to give students the opportunity to apply their classroom knowledge to help empower the small-businesses.
The initiative will allow Miami students to learn from the business owners and visa versa, according to Reading.
Most of the Latino owned small businesses have insufficient automation and technology, or do not know how to properly use it, Miami Hamilton Spanish and Portuguese professor Shelly Bromberg said.
And according to Bromberg, this is an area in which Miami students should really be able to help the small-business owners. Bromberg also works with the Wilks Scholar program and has collaborated with Reading in her efforts.
The small Latino businesses are typically restaurants or grocery stores that really need support, according to Bromberg. Bromberg said this need for support and empowerment come from the negative Latino sentiments and a lack of support from the Chamber of Commerce.
Bromberg said that after putting so much time into planning Partners for Change the expectations are high.
"(But) even if it doesn't get past a pilot, it's still been a success," Bromberg said.
However, Bromberg feels that the program will get past its pilot and be around for a while.
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