The surge of immigrant entrepreneurs impacting Middle Tennessee has spawned the idea of forming a coalition to promote the interests of foreign-born business owners.

Seeking to ignite prosperous economic development among immigrants, the Office of International Business Programs (OIBP) in the TSU College of Business has been involved in organizing the Nashville International Council for Entrepreneurs (NICE) together with representatives of immigrant-based chambers of commerce and other community organizations.

Dr. Galen Hull, director of OIBP,  had the idea of forming the coalition after examining the remarkable growth of the foreign-born population in Middle Tennessee and the significant role immigrant entrepreneurs are playing in the economic development of the region.

“Academic research shows that immigrants have higher rates of new business formation than native born citizens.  Yet, despite the fact that Nashville is becoming known nationally as an entrepreneurial center, there is relatively little information about regional entrepreneurship and even less about the role of foreign-born business owners in regional growth,” said Hull.

The TSU College of Business conducted a year-long survey of immigrant entrepreneurs in Middle Tennessee. Hull summarized results in a published journal article, “Immigrant Entrepreneurs: The Face of the New Nashville.”

He found that although the largest segment of  foreign-born businesses in Nashville are Hispanic, there are also sizeable numbers of Kurds, Somalis, Sudanese, Laotians and other nationalities. The Chinese and Indian communities are prominent in the business sector.

“This fact indicates that there is a niche in trying to address the common interests and mutual concerns of immigrant entrepreneurs in the greater Nashville area,” said Hull.

‘We are bringing together representatives of immigrant-based chambers of commerce and other organizations that can provide outreach to immigrant groups and offer support and training to new and emerging immigrant-owned businesses,” he added.

NICE aims to provide short courses in basic business subjects, offer intensive short courses in practical English, and conduct seminars, workshops and research on immigrant entrepreneurs and their concerns.

Hull also hopes to incorporate Windows onto the World, an annual lecture series hosted at TSU addressing business topics of local and global interest, into the NICE program.

A diverse board of directors from the local immigrant population will lead the organization’s strategic planning. NICE will also include an advisory group of representatives from local institutions, non-profit organizations, government agencies, professional groups, media outlets and trade associations.