Lane College has always been a beacon of hope for parts of Jackson that struggle with historically low income and high unemployment.

Now, the 123-year-old historically black institution is trying to address both problems by launching an on-campus business incubator with a $1 million grant and the promise of more funding to come.

The formal name of the incubator is the Center for Entrepreneurial Growth and Technology Innovation (CEGTI). The federal grant, funded by the Economic Development Administration, was awarded in September. Already, several businesses are in place, including a coffee shop featuring wireless Internet service and a janitorial service.

A dozen or so firms have shown interest so far, including a security firm and a restaurant. Major renovations will make room for more by this summer.

The 20,000-square-foot building that houses the incubator sits at the edge of the college grounds, down a small blacktop road near the campus pond. The incubator will provide free rent for the startups and will charge a small fee to cover utilities.

As an incubator, the Center intends to host startup companies that grow and ultimately leave to make room for new startups. Lane College officials estimate the incubator might employ 300 people over the first five to seven years of its existence.

Besides getting a break on overhead expenses—the costs that often kill small businesses—the owners will be able to get advice from Jackson and West Tennessee business leaders, says Lane College President Wesley McClure Sr.

McClure sees the incubator as a way to provide a place in the struggling neighborhood of East Jackson for entrepreneurs to take their dreams to the next level. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Lane College and much of the surrounding East Jackson neighborhood is an Historically Underutilized Business Zone, or HUB Zone. This means the census figures show that income for most households is less than 60% of the median income for the area.

“We have not seen an adequate level of participation of minorities in economic growth,” McClure says. “Our democracy will be better if more minorities are participating in the growth of the economy. A good economy breeds a better democracy.”

Businesses located in these HUB Zones benefit in a number of ways, from receiving low-interest loans to acquiring better direct access to government contracts.

CEGTI program director Wesley McClure II and his brother Carter McClure will provide counseling and support for the startup companies. Both McClures are Lane College employees and are the sons of President McClure. The two were lured here a year ago by the chance to work with their father as the elder McClure nears retirement.

Carter has an MBA and has held finance jobs with Citibank and Motorola. He also runs the recently opened Cyber Café. Wesley II brings more than 15 years of management consulting experience to the endeavor. It was his hard work over the past year with the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Economic Development Administration that secured the grant. He also consulted with other incubators for ideas and sought practical advice from an urban planning consultant in Nashville.

“It’s a labor of love,” Wesley says. “You don’t make millions of dollars running an incubator. We just wanted to spend some time with our father and do some innovative projects.”

Lane College board member Bill Hamilton, who owns an office supply company in Jackson, says the incubator might be the only chance some new businesses will have to survive.

“As a starting business, you can’t go set up shop in the high-rent districts,” Hamilton says. “This will cut their costs and keep some money in East Jackson.”

Another upcoming project at Lane will complement the incubator. The college will soon partner with the National Science Foundation for another million dollar grant that seeks to bring together black colleges and broadband Internet innovations.

President McClure says the two—the broadband project and the incubator—go hand-in-hand.

“The jobs of the future will be based on technology,” McClure says. “We want to be on the front end of the discussion that leads to the creation of jobs in the 21st Century.