Senator Brown and ODOT Host Second Economic Inclusion Forum to Bolster Opportunities for Minority and Women-Owned Businesses

CLEVELAND, Aug. 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- The second highly-anticipated Northeast Ohio forum on economic inclusion will be held on Thursday, September 1, from 1:00 pm to 4:30 pm at the Idea Center® at PlayhouseSquare, 1375 Euclid Avenue in Cleveland.

This invitation-only event will bring together more than 125 of the region's top nonprofit leaders, including funders and C-level executives from across the spectrum of not-for-profit institutions to take part in a working session focused on creating a regional framework for economic inclusion and job creation for women, minorities and small businesses.

This event, sponsored by the Ohio Department of Transportation (ODOT) District 12, in collaboration with Senator Sherrod Brown, the Cleveland Foundation, the Commission on Economic Inclusion and the Fund for Our Economic Future will build on findings from the first economic inclusion forum, which featured 61 elected and appointed public sector officials at Cleveland State University's Nance College of Business on March 31, 2011.

The Northeast Ohio Economic Inclusion Forum Series brings the region's most influential public, private and nonprofit leaders together to leverage existing economic inclusion programs, ensuring that minority and women-owned enterprises receive continued access to business opportunities.

"For families, business owners, recent college graduates and local leaders, economic opportunity should know no barriers," Senator Brown said. "This forum is a part of a continued effort to eliminate the obstacles to economic growth by encouraging economic inclusion and job creation for women and minorities in Northeast Ohio."

The goal of the series is to help grow the region's small, minority and women-owned businesses, revitalizing its economy, creating jobs and improving the quality of life for its residents.

"Now is the most important time to focus on sustainable economic development.  If we do not improve our engagement of small businesses, we are not serving our economic goals at all," said ODOT Deputy Director Myron S. Pakush.  "This is not about programs or hand-outs – it's about the smart purchasing of goods and services from qualified, professional companies who happen to be minority or women-owned."

SOURCE Synergy Marketing Strategy & Research, Inc.