Submitted by Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce
(March 24, 2025) — The Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce, the City of Middletown and the Essex Group are proud to announce the 24th Graduation Awards Ceremony of the “Side Street to Main Street” Business and Leadership Development Program.
This unique, award-winning program, a one-year long entrepreneurial and business development course with a rigorous curriculum, is designed to help people who have not had formal business training to develop the attitudes, skills and qualities necessary for business ownership and success, taking them from the side street to the Main Street of the business community.
In 1996, there were very few minority-owned businesses in Middlesex County. At the urging of the Middlesex County NAACP, the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce created the Side Street to Main Street Business and Leadership Development Program, and sought the financial support of Aetna, which generously funded and supported the Program for 23 years, ending with its last funding in 2019.
Since the inception of the Program in 1997, 299 people have graduated from the program, and it has been a successful and effective way to encourage the development of small, minority-owned businesses, which are now part of the greater Middlesex County business community.
The next “Side Street to Main Street” Business and Leadership Development Program Class is scheduled to begin in the Fall of 2025. All interested applicants must complete and submit the program’s online application and attend the Mandatory Program Orientation meeting at the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce. For more information, visit www.middlesexchamber.com.
This year’s graduates from Class 24 are shown in the above photo, which was provided by the Middlesex County Chamber of Commerce.
Left to Right: Razahnae Watson, Michele Clay, Brianna Williams (Good Heart LLC), Qualnisha Lowe (IMOM LLC), Lapriah Duncan (H.E.L.P.), Taylor Tinney (Bloom Agency LLC), Sabrina Moore (Moore Angels LLC), Quanisha Turner (Logic Apparel), Regina Regnier (Logic Database Services), Tayna Oliver-Perry (Malex Creations LLC), Ashley Stevens (The Lavish LipGlaze), Ethel Harris (Top Notch Photo Booth). Not shown: Tanisha Harris.
