OPEN FOR BUSINESS

New School of Business building offers space for business innovation, cybersecurity, focus group research and more.

In February, North Carolina Central University (NCCU) opened its new School of Business facility. The 76,000-square-foot building located on 4.58 acres is a state-of-the-art establishment that symbolizes NCCU’s dedication to equip students with everything needed to guarantee success in their education and careers.

One of the key focus points in the new facility is the Business Innovation Lab. In this area, students will be able to develop their entrepreneurial concepts from idea to commercialization. Students will have access to resources necessary for turning their emerging thoughts into scalable products or services. Those resources include 3-D printers, reality software, AI technology and research data platforms.

Another outstanding element of NCCU’s new business school is Lowe's Auditorium. With high-end audiovisual tools, the 200-seat auditorium will offer vibrant speaker series for the campus and community.

“It has a dedicated space for organizations like the Entrepreneurship Club to meet and plan, allowing us as students a space to relax, more opportunity to get to know the staff in the business building and network with each other more effectively,” said Mahagany Barber, a business administration major with a concentration in marketing.

An upgraded Culinary Lab features cameras on top of the ranges so students can watch a chef from a different angle and cooking features to provide hands-on training for aspiring hospitality professionals. It is conjoined to a dining room, a versatile space intended for hosting events that will enhance the hospitality experience.

Supporting one of the School of Business’ most rapidly growing concentrations, the new Cybersecurity Lab is an advanced space for students to engage in application-based learning and excel in a high-demand field.

Other features include the Behavioral Research Classroom that includes a double-sided mirror to use for conducting focus group evaluations and the Trading Room for finance students that offers Bloomberg terminals with access to real-time financial data, news and analytics.

“It will serve as a hub for fostering creativity, entrepreneurship, and academic achievement, providing our students and faculty with stateof-the-art facilities to propel them towards future success,” said Anthony Nelson, Ph.D., dean, NCCU School of Business.

Several programmatic changes will be instituted, including the expanded MBA program which has seen more than 100% growth in the last four years. That growth is due to establishing new concentrations including cybersecurity, information systems management, commercial real estate and wealth management – making NCCU the first historically Black university to hold these concentrations on an MBA level.

The Business Incubator Suite will house the Center of Entrepreneurship and Economic Development, a program that fosters innovation and support for student, faculty, staff and community entrepreneurs. The suite also features the Peggy Ward Financial Education Center, which will serve as an academic landscape for students, high school teachers and community members through an array of financial resources and courses.

Beginning in June 2024, the building will also serve as a gateway for the next generation of leaders, hosting five or more summer camps.

’BY ATTIYYA DUNN ’16