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Notable Activities

Services Cooperative Association has been very active in community economic development
and entrepreneurial education activities since 1983. A few of our many benchmarking activities include:

1983	Founded the nation's first business and professional cooperative association for entrepreneurial education.
1984	Sent delegates to the Texas State Entrepreneurship Education Conference where one was appointed coordinator for the Greater Houston Area Entrepreneurship Education Steering Committee.
1985	Founded the first small business incubator in Houston, the Entrepreneurial Development Center (EDC), which houses start-up and emerging companies. The EDC has become Texas' oldest business incubator.
1986	Sent delegates to the White House Conference on Small Business where one was elected Vice Chairman of the Texas Delegation and another was co-author of a resolution that became law.
1987	Received a Mayoral Proclamation for graduating the first Houston company from a business incubator.
1988	Sponsored the "First Houston Entrepreneurship Awards" recognizing those organizations fostering small business growth in Houston and became a charter incubator for the Texas Business Incubator Association.
1989	Sponsored the "First Houston Small Business Seed Capital Fund" to provide financial assistance to start-up and early development stage companies.
1990	Founded the nation's first business incubator for women, the Womens Business Center (WBC), with development programs to accelerate the growth of woman-owned businesses and the female career professional.
1991	Founded the Software Business Center (SBC), the first business incubator for software developers and computer-related companies and formed the Incubator Self Sufficiency Group (ISSG), an economic development service bureau.
1992	Founded the Product Development Center (PDC), a business incubator for inventors, investors, new product commercialization and technology transfer.
1993	Founded the International Business Center (IBC), the first business incubator for international services, importers and exporters and created the nation's first Certified Business Incubators for the Texas Business Incubator Association in the "Beta Project for Certification, Efficiency and Curriculum Development"
1994	Sponsored the first "Tribute to Houston's Entrepreneurial Community" recognizing outstanding entrepreneurial leadership in Houston.
1995	Houston host incubator for the United States Information Agency - Institute of International Education, International Visitors Program and recognized "Houston - Emerging Business Capital of the World!"
1996	Received a Mayoral Proclamation for sponsoring "Entrepreneurial Community Tribute Day, July 3, 1996," sent delegates to the Texas Governor's Conference on Small Business where one was co-author of a resolution for legislation to prohibit public/private competition and sponsored the "Living the American Dream Award" recognizing self-made entrepreneurial success.
1997	Created the "Building Your American Dream" educational program for business owners, founded the Health-Medical Enterprise Center (H/MEC), a business incubator for healthcare product and service providers and sponsored the "8th Entrepreneurial Workshop and 1997 Tribute to Houston's Entrepreneurial Community."
1998	Celebrated 15 years as "Houston's CrossRoads" bringing together the diversity of the Houston Business Community and received a Certificate of Recognition from Houston City Council for 15th Annual Houston Business Breakfast.
1999	Received a Mayoral Proclamation signifying July 7, 1999 as "Services Cooperative Association Emerging Business Day" and sponsored the "10th Entrepreneurial Workshop - Accelerated Entrepreneurship."
2000	Recognized as "One of Houston's Core Entrepreneurial Groups" by the University of Houston Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation and recognized "as an industry leader and pioneer in business incubation" by the National Business Incubation Association (NBIA).
2001	Received the "2001 BBB Gold Star Award" from the Greater Houston Area Better Business Bureau, nominated for the Annual Innovation Award by the NBIA and received a Mayoral Proclamation "Services Cooperative Association Day - July 3rd."
2002	Created the "Houston Hospitality Program" to assist small business owners from other countries in starting businesses in Houston.
2003	Celebrated 20 years as "Houston's Emerging Business CrossRoads" with national recognition and sponsored the First Annual "Holiday Gift Exchange" for the Federation of Houston Networking Groups."
2004	Sponsored "Houston Heroes" luncheon recognizing those groups empowering local entrepreneurs and received a Mayoral Proclamation signifying July 1, 2004 as "Services Cooperative Association Houston Heroes Day."
2005	Sponsored the 16th Annual Entrepreneurial Workshop "Entrepreneurial Excellence" recognizing Houston's entrepreneurial independence.
2006	Invited by the People's Republic of China to speak at the formation of the Women Entrepreneurs Association in China.
2007	Sponsored the Women's Business Assistance Forum Online for women business owners assisting other women business owners.
2008	Commenced a project to make the Small Business Certification Process more expeditious.
2009	Commenced Start A Business Store/Mall and Open 24-7 in Houston.
2010	Commenced LunchBreak.biz
1983 to present	Continued sponsor of annual economic development events including *"Houston Economic Forecast Breakfast"* December 31st; "Entrepreneurial Workshop" and "Houston Heroes" to celebrate Independence Day in July; "Trade Fair & Mini Business Expo" in April and November; "Halloween BooFest" in October and the "Holiday Gift Exchange" in December, both benefiting a local charity.

"Entrepreneurship spoken here!"

Did you know the self-funded, independent research conducted by Services Cooperative Association conclusively demonstrated that:

1) Business incubators accelerated business growth, resulting in an entire generation of business incubators being named "accelerators?"
2) Women were starting business at a faster rate than men, resulting in the federal government commencing the Women's Business Centers initiative?
3) Entrepreneurship could be taught, resulting in colleges and universities across the nation creating entrepreneurship programs and degrees?
4) Entrepreneurship education could be measured in absolute terms of employment and wealth creation, resulting in the term "Entrepreneurial Development?" (And the "Entrepreneurial Development Centers and Entrepreneurial Development Programs created around the nation?)
5) Incubating service companies created more employment while incubating technology companies created more wealth, resulting in virtually every state in the nation starting technology incubators?
6) Incubators operated as charities and utilizing advisors without actual "hands-on" business experience did not produce successful companies in the same dollar cost ratio that incubators charging fees and utilizing advisors with experience did, resulting in a grand sweep of incubators conforming to the business model of fees and experience pioneered by SCA Research?

For more information about related activities, please click here.

Some of the charities SCA has supported include:

For immediate response about Business Development for incubators,
resident companies and entrepreneurs, send e-mail to: Emerging Business Centers

Services Cooperative Association
9600 Long Point Road, Suite 150
Houston, Texas 77055
713-932-7495 voice
713-932-7498 fax
email: service@serviceSCA.org

For more information about this site, contact: Business Support Center - a Womens Business Center graduate company