HENRY COUNTY, Va. (Romero Report) — Patrick & Henry Community College (P&HCC) is partnering with the SOVA Innovation Hub to expand the RISE Collaborative, a regional initiative aimed at supporting entrepreneurs.

According to a news release, the RISE Collaborative connects business owners with essential resources, offering entrepreneur resources, meetups, events, and programs for new and growing businesses, as well as student and educator programs.

Le’Bryan Patterson has been named as the RISE Collaborative’s P&HCC Community Navigator.

In this role, Patterson will work with regional businesses to enhance community knowledge of the entrepreneurial ecosystem and establish relationships with businesses, individuals, and organizations interested in supporting entrepreneurs.

He will also develop a referral pipeline for potential entrepreneurs and innovators, particularly those aligned with traded sector or scalable business opportunities, the release said.

Additionally, Patterson will maintain a network of local service providers, business resources, state and federal agencies, and financial institutions to assist emerging and growing business owners.

Participants in the Start Up and Grow MHC programs will also collaborate with Patterson during their courses.

“We need the community’s help in identifying potential high-growth, traded sector businesses and entrepreneurs to work with Le’Bryan, P&HCC, and RISE. Whether entrepreneurs are just starting or if they are already established and need assistance with growth and scaling, the RISE Community Business Navigator program is a new resource,” said SOVA Innovation Hub team member Lauren Mathena.

Small business owners and entrepreneurs can connect with Patterson at the community college’s Thomas Dalton IDEA Center in Uptown Martinsville for support and resources.

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