Trice Edney Communications, LLC and Trice Edney News Wire, founded five years ago by award winning veteran journalist Hazel Trice Edney, has opened a satellite office in the Howard University School of Communications.
The new office is located in the CERRC (Communications Entrepreneurship Research and Resource Center), Room 108, 525 Bryant Street NW. The CERRC program serves as an entrepreneurial training center and incubator for students and emerging business owners.
“With Black media of all genres making pivotal business decisions, I am incredibility grateful to Dean Gracie Lawson-Borders for this opportunity to not only house this firm at the ‘Mecca’, but also to continue enhancing the CERRC program by fortifying the growth of student entrepreneurs and journalists right here on site,” said Trice Edney. “It is an honor and responsibility that I do not take lightly.”
With the slogan, “Provocative, Empowering, Unapologetically Black,” the subscriber-based Trice Edney News Wire is currently the only Black-owned news wire fully credentialed by the U. S. House and Senate Periodicals Press Gallery. In addition to the news wire, Trice Edney Communications also owns the National News Releases e-blast service and BlackPressAds, an advertising placement service.
Since the company’s launch at the National Press Club Nov. 19, 2010, it has served thousands of clients and subscribers. A staple Trice Edney event is the Stateswomen for Justice Luncheon, held annually in March as a free celebration of Women’s History Month and the anniversary of the Black Press.
For the past three years, Hazel Trice Edney has served as the CERRC Center’s entrepreneur in residence for curriculum. Edney also teaches the entrepreneurship course in the School of Communications. Following CERRC’s annual entrepreneurship Boot Camp Nov. 20, the CERRC Center also held a grand re-opening as it moved its new office suite into the School of Communications from a remote campus location.
Dean Gracie Lawson-Borders, said the partnership with Trice Edney Communications and News Wire is a “win-win” relationship.
“Our partnership with a growing, Black-owned and woman-owned firm not only establishes an on-site role model for our students, but Hazel’s teaching skills in the entrepreneurship class and in journalism have been an outstanding service to the School of Communications,” she said.
A recent American Express study on the “State of Women-owned Businesses” reports a 322 percent growth in businesses owned by Black women since 1997. But, at 49 percent of Black business owners, that number still lags slightly behind Black men.
Assistant Dean Robin. E. Thornhill, also the director of the CERRC Center, said, “Since 2009, the CERRC program has assisted students with realizing their dreams of business ownership. For the past six semesters, Hazel Trice Edney has served excellently as our entrepreneur in residence for the CERRC curriculum. Therefore, we are excited to now build and enhance the program with the onsite presence of a satellite office of Trice Edney Communications. Hazel’s business-building acumen, coupled with her passion for teaching our students and facilitation of guest lecturers have attracted national business experts to our classroom and resulted in many winning business plans.”
