Two Rising Tide Capital Entrepreneurs Receive One Year Residencies at NJCU Business Development Incubator

Jersey City, NJ, February 10, 2011 – Two Rising Tide Capital (RTC) entrepreneurs each received a one year residency at the New Jersey City University (NJCU) Business Development Incubator (BDI) as a part of the E2  (Enterprise and Economic) Development Initiative, funded by the Department of Housing and Urban Development. Jorge Diaz and Mona Fitch-Elliott, both Fall 2010 graduates of RTC’s CommunityBusinessAcademy, began their residencies at the beginning of this month. In addition to the one year, rent-free residency at the BDI (including rent, heat, lights, and cleaning services), the two selected entrepreneurs also will also each receive the assistance of an intern for two consecutive semesters. This program has been made possible due to a new three-year partnership between the NJCU BDI and RTC.

The E2 Incubator Residency Program is an opportunity open exclusively to the graduates of RTC’s CommunityBusinessAcademy, an 11-week course offering hands-on training in business planning and management. Fitch-Elliot and Diaz are the first two beneficiaries of the E2 program. The criteria for being selected include having businesses that could benefit from having fulltime office space, possessing the personal technical and managerial skills, as well as the experience required to start and grow a business. Diaz and Fitch-Elliott, though both running two very different businesses, best exemplified all of the requirements.

Fitch-Elliott, founder and president of Excite Write Education Services, is developing “The Adventures of the Parts of Speech,” an educational resource for the purpose of teaching and reinforcing learning about the eight parts of speech on an elementary level. The product consists of a book and a companion video CD of foundational language arts learning in a fun and interactive way. The company will also provide tutorial services, workshops and other education products and services. Mona Fitch-Elliott, the founder and president, is a certified teacher of English and Social Studies. She holds a BS in Business Management from St. PetersCollege, Jersey City, a MA in English from RutgersUniversity, and a Master of Divinity degree from the Lutheran Theological Seminary in Philadelphia. Ms. Fitch-Elliott is an ordained minister of the EvangelicalLutheranChurch in America.

“Joining the BDI community is more than I could have ever hoped for! This opportunity assures that Excite Write Education Services is more than just a pipe dream. The residency has helped propel the development of the business forward and provided a great foundation. Thank you to Rising Tide Capital and BDI for supporting the Excite Write effort,” Fitch-Elliott said. Representatives from both BDI and RTC are excited about this one-of-a-kind opportunity.

Jorge Diaz is the founder and president of JD TechSolutions. JD TechSolutions is an innovative start-up technology service provider that delivers cost effective, efficient, and reliable technical services to small and medium-sized businesses. JD Tech provides a holistic approach to technology by evaluating existing technical architecture, understanding the customer’s business, and developing a maintenance solution that aligns with the unique needs of the company. JD Tech provides solutions that streamline and speedup a business’s processes and reduce associated costs in network administration, desktop management, information security, VoIP and cloud computing services. 

“Being part of BDI gives me the advantage of operating the business from a professional office environment in a state-of-the-art facility.  Thanks Rising Tide and BDI for this initiative,” Diaz said.

Both Rising Tide Capital and the Business Development Incubator are happy to begin this new project. “This is a great opportunity for the Business Development Incubator at New JerseyCityUniversity to help entrepreneurs focus on what they do best.  BDI is ‘where ideas go to work’ and we will be supporting Jorge and Mona every step of the way,” BDI director Gina Boesch said.

“We are very excited about this new partnership with BDI, which allows our entrepreneurs the opportunity to develop their businesses in the BDI. We look forward to an amazing three year partnership that will help to really accelerate the businesses of some of our most promising entrepreneurs,” said Jay Savulich, RTC Director of Programs.

Rising Tide Capital is a 501 (C) 3 non-profit organization based in Jersey City, New Jersey, and dedicated to the economic empowerment of low-income communities through entrepreneurship. Our mission is to assist struggling entrepreneurs and distressed communities to build strong businesses that transform lives, strengthen families and create thriving, sustainable neighborhoods. For more information about Rising Tide Capital, visit www.RisingTideCapital.org

BDI assists young, small companies to commercialize their products, processes and services by providing private office space, shared office resources and access to technical, financial, legal, marketing, and management assistance.  By nurturing the entrepreneurial talents of the greater metropolitan business community, students, graduates, and faculty, BDI helps ideas go to work in Jersey City.  Our companies are a mix of entrepreneurs using technology to create products, services and value for customers.  They work independently, but learn from each other in a collegial atmosphere.