[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 157 (2011), Part 5]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page 6979]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




         COMMENDING THE MASON SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT CENTER

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. GERALD E. CONNOLLY

                              of virginia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 10, 2011

  Mr. CONNOLLY of Virginia. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to commend The 
Mason Small Business Development Center for being named the 2011 Small 
Business Development Center of Excellence and Innovation by the Small 
Business Administration Washington Metro Area District Office. This 
award recognizes and honors centers that use innovation to provide 
quality and effective services to small businesses to help them improve 
program management and delivery.
   For more than ten years, The Mason SBDC has helped small businesses 
throughout Northern Virginia support and business counseling services. 
It is a successful partnership between the federal government, 
Commonwealth of Virginia and George Mason University, and it assisted 
more than 480 small businesses in 2010. The hard work and dedication of 
the team members from The Mason SBDC has resulted in the retention of 
more than 1,200 local jobs. The Washington Metropolitan region has 
greatly benefited from the vitality of the small business sector, and 
The Mason SBDC is an important part of that success.
   Mr. Speaker, I encourage my colleagues to join me in commending The 
Mason Small Business Development Center and its team members for their 
efforts on behalf of our nation's small businesses.

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