Richland Library introduces new Entrepreneurs-in-Residence

February 8, 2024

Meet the Creative Problem Solver, Michele Dugar

Richland Library is pleased to announce Michele Duggar as the first Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EiR) of 2024.

Michele Dugar is both an educator and a practitioner when it comes to marketing, innovation, and entrepreneurship. She is a certified instructor of entrepreneurship and a Small Business Center advisor with over 25 years of experience as a business professor at Benedict College and the University of South Carolina. Using “Design Thinking” frameworks for her clients, Dugar helps guide people to find creative opportunities where others see roadblocks.

As the founder of the award-winning Blaze Training and Facilitation, she works to dramatically increase collaboration, connection, clarity, and creativity within a company. She also owns and operates a youth subscription box, “My Zoom Box”, that features Black youth on exhilarating adventures and reinforces that is is ordinary to be extraordinary. Dugar has helped many entrepreneurs launch and expand their businesses and looks forward to assisting Richland Library customers as they take their businesses to new heights. To learn more about Michele Dugar, visit www.richlandlibrary.com/residents.

During her residency, which runs February – May 2024, Dugar plans to:

  • connect with fellow entrepreneurs and business owners in Richland County
  • share her expertise with entrepreneurs and small business owners by hosting office hours and curating digital content for the library’s website.
  • work closely with library staff to offer programs, which are free and open to the public, that focus on important issues and timely interests of entrepreneurs and small business owners

Customers can join the new Entrepreneur-in-Residence at the first two programs of her residency:

February 21 | 6 PM | Richland Library Main

March 11 | 6 PM | Richland Library Main

Initially developed in 2019, the Entrepreneur-in-Residence program strives to offer access to seasoned, diverse entrepreneurial leaders with proven expertise, demonstrated success and the heart of a coach.

For questions, please contact Tacara (Carpenter) Young at 803-351-5616 or [email protected].

 

About Richland Library

Awarded the National Medal in 2017 by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, Richland Library is a vibrant, contemporary organization that provides resources and information that advance the Midlands. Offering state-of-the-art technology, a variety of literary and cultural programs and 13 bustling facilities located throughout the county, Richland Library provides a truly customizable, modern library experience for residents and visitors alike.