Massachusetts immigrant entrepreneurs sought for honors

 MALDEN, Mass, June 19, 2019 /  The Immigrant Learning Center, Inc. seeks outstanding immigrant entrepreneurs to be honored at the 2019 Barry M. Portnoy Immigrant Entrepreneur Awards. Nominations are being accepted now through September 2, 2019, for outstanding immigrant business founders in four categories: business growth, neighborhood business, high-tech business and life science business. Self-nominations are encouraged.

 The only one if its kind in New England, these awards are a special opportunity for Massachusetts to showcase the entrepreneurial talent of immigrants who are drawn here. These entrepreneurs enhance Massachusetts’ neighborhoods, grow the economy and cement the commonwealth’s reputation as an innovation hub.  In his role as Massachusetts Secretary of Housing and Economic Development, Jay Ash, currently president and CEO of the Massachusetts Competitive Partnership, has been a frequent speaker at previous Immigrant Entrepreneur Awards Ceremonies. He highlighted the importance of this event by saying, “Our ability to attract and retain the best talent from across the world is a critical component in keeping Massachusetts competitive in the global economy. These Immigrant Entrepreneur Awards are a potent reminder of that. I’m looking forward to being inspired by this year’s nominees.”

 Winners will be chosen by a selection committee that reviews the nominations and selects one winner in each category. The Immigrant Learning Center is seeking two more members to round out this year’s committee. This year’s committed members are:

 Business Growth: Herby Duverné, Windwalker Group and former Immigrant Entrepreneur Award Winner; Debi Kleiman, Arthur M. Blank Center for Entrepreneurship, Babson College; Denzil Mohammed, Public Education Institute at The Immigrant Learning Center, Inc.; and Jose Luis Rojas Villarreal, Boston Private Bank

 Neighborhood Business: Leandro Freire, Accion East; Denzil Mohammed, Public Education Institute at The Immigrant Learning Center, Inc. and Theresa Park, City of Lawrence

 High-Tech Business: Doug Banks, Boston Business Journal; Abi Barrow, Cambridge Innovation Partners; Kathleen Hagan, Hagan and Company; Denzil Mohammed, Public Education Institute at The Immigrant Learning Center, Inc.; and Julianne Zimmerman, Reinventure Capital

 Life Science Business: Lauren Celano, Propel Careers; Alison Farquhar, GTL Coaching & Consulting, LLC and Denzil Mohammed, Public Education Institute at The Immigrant Learning Center, Inc.

 Last year’s award winners were: Fausto Garcia of Five Star Plating in Lawrence for business growth, Umesh Bhuju of Zumi’s Espresso in Ipswich for neighborhood business, Bettina Hein of Pixability for high-tech business in Boston and Michael Koeris of Sample6 Technologies in Boston for life science business. To see a complete list of nominees and award winners for the past seven years, visit The Immigrant Learning Center’s website.

 The Immigrant Learning Center invites everyone to take a stand for welcoming the best talent in the world and participate in the 2019 Barry M. Portnoy Immigrant Entrepreneur Awards. The Awards Ceremony will take place on Thursday, October 24, 2019, at the Royal Sonesta Boston in Cambridge, Mass. Nomination forms as well as sponsorship and ticket information can be found on The Immigrant Learning Center’s website athttp://www.ilctr.org.

 About Barry M. Portnoy

Barry M. Portnoy was the founder of The RMR Group, an alternative asset management company, and a founding board member of The Immigrant Learning Center. As a consummate entrepreneur, he built businesses that spanned the globe, employed thousands and contributed mightily to local economies. His steadfast support of The ILC gave thousands of immigrants a voice. Because of his unwavering belief in immigrants and the transformational impact of entrepreneurship, The ILC Immigrant Entrepreneur Awards were renamed after his death in 2018.

About The Immigrant Learning Center, Inc.

The Immigrant Learning Center, Inc. (ILC) of Malden, MA, is a not-for-profit organization that gives immigrants a voice in three ways. The English-language program provides free, year-round English classes to immigrant and refugee adults in Greater Boston to help them become successful workers, parents and community members. The Public Education Institute informs Americans about the economic and social contributions of immigrants in our society, and the Institute for Immigration Research, a joint venture with George Mason University, conducts research on the economic contributions of immigrants.

For more information, visit the website http://www.ilctr.org. The ILC can also be found on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and Flickr.

Media Contact:

Karen E. Glover

The ILC Director of Communications

Phone: (781) 322-9777

kglover@ilctr.org   

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