California State University, Fullerton, said Thursday it won a contract renewal worth $1.6 million from the U.S. Small Business Administration.
The deal charges Cal State Fullerton with overseeing the administration’s small business development centers in the region.
The renewal is for one year. The university has been running the centers since 2003.
The facilities provide training, consulting and technical assistance for businesses with fewer than 100 employees. A Santa Ana center covers Orange County with a Riverside center taking care of the Inland Empire. Another center in Irvine covers technology companies only.
Last year the centers counseled and trained more than 11,000 clients, Cal State Fullerton said.
“OC and the Inland Empire are dominated by small companies,” said Anil Puri, dean of Cal State Fullerton’s College of Business and Economics. “By providing expert advice to such companies we are supporting the economic development of the Southern California region.”
