Danita Blackwood

Browse by Tags

• American Bakers Association
• and that hurts us across the board - in national security
• Arabic
• BUSINESS
• business conditions
• business relationships
• Chinese
• Congress
• Congress helps small business
• consumer confidence
• credit crunch and lending crisis
• critical foreign languages to younger students
• cut costs
• economy
• energy
• entrepreneurs
• entrepreneurs online
• food
• fuel prices
• gas prices
• higher prices
• Hindi
• international sales can pay
• literacy activist
• nation's debt crisis
• Persian and Urdu
• products and services are not only increasing for the corner business but the consumers they serve
• small and mid-sized businesses
• small enterprises
• STARTALK
• University of Maryland National Foreign Language Center
• veteran entrepreneur

• Small Business Price Squeeze Examined By Lawmakers

  Rising prices are impacting small business on many fronts: energy, food, products and services are not only increasing for the corner business but the consumers they serve. The current economic downturn leaves consumers with less disposable income for the products and services these small firms bring to market. Today, the House Committee on Small Business examined how the trends are affecting the nation’s economic food chain. Committee Members heard from a panel of entrepreneurs, and called for a national dialogue to yield sound policy and a full understanding of variables driving prices for such items as bread, eggs and milk. Small firms feel the impact of sudden increases in business expenses more harshly than their larger counterparts. At today’s hearing, the American Bakers Association noted a bag of bread flour cost $17 in 2006. That same bag now costs a small business $52. For many entrepreneurs, such radical jumps in costs can mean the difference between turning a profit and being forced to shut their doors. ... Posted May 15 2008, 12:05 PM by Danita Blackwood with | with no comments Filed under: entrepreneurs, veteran entrepreneur, business relationships, Congress, fuel prices, cut costs, higher prices, entrepreneurs online, Congress helps small business, gas prices, business conditions, consumer confidence, economy, energy, credit crunch and lending crisis, government and daily life, nation's debt crisis, products and services are not only increasing for the corner business but the consumers they serve, food, American Bakers Association

• Businesses May Benefit From Effort to Teach Five Critical Languages

  Two federal agencies are teaming up with educators in a new national security effort spanning 32 states that could be a big benefit for business too. The STARTALK Program - administered by the University of Maryland National Foreign Language Center with funding from the U.S. Director of National Intelligence and the Department of Defense - will offer 81 programs this summer in five critical languages: Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Persian and Urdu, with space for more than 2,600 students and nearly 1,100 teachers. Last summer the program debuted with 34 programs in 21 states, taught only Arabic and Chinese, involved about one-third as many participants and did not include middle school-age students. The program targets current and prospective teachers to prepare them for instruction in K through 16 environments, as well as middle and high school students. ... Posted May 13 2008, 10:45 AM by Danita Blackwood with | with no comments Filed under: literacy activist, small enterprises, small and mid-sized businesses, international sales can pay, economy, BUSINESS, STARTALK, University of Maryland National Foreign Language Center, and that hurts us across the board - in national security, Chinese, government and daily life, Persian and Urdu, Hindi, critical foreign languages to younger students, Arabic