State Hosts 4th Annual 2018 Business Opportunities & Entrepreneurial Training Summit for Small, Minority, Women, & Veteran-Owned Businesses

BALTIMORE, MD – The Maryland Department of General Services (DGS), the Maryland Department of Transportation (MDOT), and the University System of Maryland (USM) today hosted the 4th annual Business Opportunities and Entrepreneurial Training Summit. The summit, which is held in Ellicott City at the Turf Valley Conference Center, attracted over 500 businesses from across the state.

“Our administration is committed to connecting small, local, minority, women, and veteran-owned business to resources that will help them grow, succeed, and create even more jobs for Marylanders,” said Governor Larry Hogan. “These businesses are the backbone of our economy and their continued growth is vital to the economic future of our state.”

The summit is a premier event for small, local, minority, women, and veteran-owned businesses. Maryland is committed to expanding opportunities for businesses to learn about and compete for the billions of dollars in available state contracts. Together MDOT, DGS, and USM offer over $4 billion in contracting opportunities. Maryland is committed to creating jobs and economic prosperity for all Marylanders.

“This summit is a valuable resource to address the needs of Maryland’s business community by identifying available opportunities,” said DGS Secretary Ellington Churchill. “Our department is committed to building on the success of past summits and further proving that Maryland is open for business.”

“MDOT has an unprecedented number of projects across Maryland,” said MDOT Secretary Pete Rahn. “Our project directors and procurement managers from all of our transportation business units are here to provide firsthand information on these projects.”

The primary goal of the summit is to connect business owners with Maryland’s decision-makers, project managers, and procurement officials in an effort to provide them with valuable and transparent information on current and upcoming contracting opportunities with MDOT, DGS, and USM. The summit also offered a variety of training workshops and panel discussions for registered attendees.

“The University System of Maryland is proud to once again partner with our state agency partners to support our ongoing efforts to ensure Maryland’s small and minority-owned businesses have the knowledge and support they need to effectively compete for procurement opportunities,” said Chancellor Robert Caret.

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