DURHAM – A century ago, part of downtown Durham was known as “the Black Wall Street” because of the economic energy generated by companies like North Carolina Mutual Life Insurance Co. and Mechanics and Farmers Bank.
In 1890, black-owned property in Durham County was valued at $8,696. By 1920, that figure had exploded to $4.3 million.1
Similarly today, with economic growth burgeoning in technology and tourism, North Carolina Central University is poised to boost 21st-century industries with well-trained graduates in business.
The Connect NC bond proposal that will go to voters March 15 includes a $30 million upgrade to the university’s 1950s-era business school, bringing modern classrooms and labs to the heart of Durham for students of all races.2
“Our current school of business infrastructure is 60 years old,” George R. Hamilton, chairman of NCCU’s Board of Trustees and a former executive at Dow, says in the accompanying video.
“It’s time for us to update that facility, so that we can do a better job of attracting the right students and preparing those students to go out into a global economy and be successful.”3
Modern classrooms and a simulated trading floor will help NCCU keep pace with changes Durham has seen in recent decades. Warehouses and downtown districts that once stood empty are now filled with thriving technology and education firms — businesses that demand the advanced skills of B-school graduates.
The renaissance of small and medium-sized businesses goes beyond high-profile startups. Even more workaday businesses — coffee shops, independent bookstores, music venues — have attracted national notice.
“Like firecrackers exploding around downtown Durham, clusters of small businesses are popping up and enlivening one desolate block after another,” The New York Times crowed in 2014.4
To create more economic firecrackers, NCCU’s new business school will include an Entrepreneurship Center to encourage student interest in business development.
“North Carolina Central University serves the 21st century techno-scholar,” said Chancellor Debra Saunders-White. “Students who are technology trendsetters and leaders and understand how technology intersects with all disciplines, from STEM to the liberal arts, social sciences, business, education, law and nursing.”5
NCCU projects that the new business school will generate 475 new jobs and inject $12.3 million a year into the state’s economy, recovering the initial investment in just three years.6
In a particularly creative move, the revamped business school will tap into another of Durham’s nationally recognized strengths: delicious food.
An advanced culinary center — part of NCCU’s growing Hospitality and Tourism program — will allow students to explore the science and economics of running a profitable restaurant, fueling an industry that has been critical to the region’s transition away from a tobacco-based economy.
The world-class restaurant scene in Durham has done more than pull visitors to North Carolina. It has also helped farmers find new ways to sustain agriculture as both tobacco and cotton production have declined.7
Access to high-quality ingredients has made Durham and the Triangle a hub of the local food movement while highlighting the state’s rich food traditions. NCCU’s culinary center will help continue that synergy, developing talent for an industry that makes North Carolina a national destination.
“Durham is a great city for entrepreneurship, one of the top in the nation,” said Dr. Wanda Lester, interim dean of the business school. “We want to be a part of that, supporting this economy.”8
The following video features NCCU Board Chairman George R. Hamilton sharing multiple reasons why the bonds are necessary.
1 Boyd, William (3 June 1927). The Story of Durham. Duke University Press. p. 70.
2 http://northcarolina.edu/node/3629
3 https://youtu.be/K_szqC_hTFQ
4 http://www.nytimes.com/2014/08/17/travel/a-corner-of-durham-nc-comes-to-life.html
5 http://northcarolina.edu/node/3629
6 https://youtu.be/K_szqC_hTFQ
7 http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/21/dining/21carolina.html
8 https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=DxghOecVaFY
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