UofL BEATS Week Promotes Equitable Entreprenuership in Louisville

University of Louisville Libraries is partnering with Black Complex and The Jack Harlow Foundation to present Louisville’s first annual BEATS Week from September 18 – September 22, 2023.

 BEATS (Business, Equity, Arts, Technology, and Sciences) Week is a week-long event series seeking to remove barriers and strengthen Louisville’s entrepreneurial ecosystem by connecting local underrepresented entrepreneurs with research, resources, and community. 

 According to a 2022 survey, 60% of college students are interested in owning their own business with 17% of those students currently owning a business. This number increased nearly 4 times in 4 years, with only 4.7% of college students owning businesses in 2018. 

 In 2021, Louisville Metro reported that African Americans owned just 2.4% of local businesses, despite accounting for 23.4% of the population. Minority business owners are less than 10% of the city's business owners.

 BEATS Week aims to provide resources to underrepresented entrepreneurs who often encounter inequitable access to professional and business development opportunities. Learn more about BEATS Week.  Register here to attend events.