WBEA

WBEA Women's Business Center

MARCH FESTIVALS: 

10 TEXAS CELEBRATIONS WORTH A TRIP

From spring blooms and St. Patrick’s Day celebrations to rodeos and rattlesnake roundups, here are 10 of the top Texas festivals worthy of a road trip this month. 

The Women’s Business Enterprise Alliance invites you to apply to participate in WBEAPitch. The top two pitches will receive a ticket to the WBENCPitch National Semi-finals! Increase awareness and showcase your business's capabilities with this pitch competition at the WBEA Women's Business Leadership Conference on June.

Each participant will have 3 minutes to deliver a pitch about their business to a panel of judges comprised of corporate representatives. 

**Mandatory Competition Dates**

• Must attend Pitch Overview and Practice Session (via Zoom) May 28, 2025 from 10:00 am-11:30 am.

• First Round: June , 3:00 pm-5:00 pm

• Second Round: The top 5 will pitch at the Legacy Awards Luncheon on June from 11:00 am-2:00 pm; The top 3 winners will be announced then

DEADLINE TO APPLY: MAY 16th at 5:00 pm

The winners will receive:

First Place

•   $1,000 cash prize

•   Placement in semi-finals of the WBENC National Pitch Competition (Strength Round) 

•   Power Hour with a senior corporate executive

•   4 complimentary golfing certificates at Tour 18 in Humble, TX

Second Place

•   $500 cash prize

•   Placement in semi-finals of the WBENC National Pitch Competition (Strength Round) 

•   2 complimentary golfing certificates at Tour 18 in Humble, TX

Third Place

•   $250 cash prize

•   Placement in semi-finals of the WBENC National Pitch Competition (Strength Round) 

•   2 complimentary golfing certificates at Tour 18 in Humble, TX

WHEN 

Wednesday, June , 2025

3:00 pm - 5:00 pm

WHERE

DoubleTree by Hilton Houston Greenway Plaza

6 East Greenway Plaza, Houston, TX 

ELIGIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

• To be eligible, applicants must be active WBENC Certified WBE. 

• The person pitching must be the female owner of the company.

Participant fits the following Innovation Criteria:

o  Existing innovative product, service, or business solution that is ready for market or currently in the market (not a future idea or endeavor seeking an investment).

o  Disruptor in their current market.

o  WBE has differentiated their business from standard offerings within their industry.

o  Innovative solution solves a problem in a new/inventive way

GUIDELINES

• 3 minute pitch that garners interest

• The Pitch must be about your existing business, not a future endeavor or innovation. However, your pitch must include an innovation 

• No notes, slides, audiovisual support, or large props. Any item a presenter would like to incorporate into their pitch that falls outside of these guidelines must be approved in advance by WBEA.

• Your introduction must include your name, company, and industry.

For questions or more information, contact WBEA Events at wbeaevents@wbea-texas.org or call 713-681-9232.

Pennoni’s Tips for Future-Proofing Your Grant Pursuits

With a new president and Congress now seated, a revised federal agenda will soon be taking shape. This includes changing priorities within grant programs for federal grants and state grants funded through federal dollars.



Here are five tips for adjusting your grant writing strategy to weather the uncertainty as newly installed leadership begins announcing changes and issuing direction on how federal dollars are to be allocated.

1. Proceed with Business as Usual

Don’t count on delays. It’s possible that some open opportunities may be rescinded and later reissued but assume current deadlines will remain in place unless announced otherwise.

2. Adjust Your Language

Especially for opportunities that were released under the previous administration but will be reviewed and awarded by the new one, respond to the narrative requirements through the lens of the new administration’s priorities. Although scoring rubrics must still follow the stated evaluation criteria, project elements can be described in language that speaks to known preferences of the new administration. (For example, frequent flooding and severe weather can be described while limiting use of the phrase “climate change.”)

3. Play the Long Game

Some grant programs have been around for years and are simply tweaked by each administration. Their longevity indicates broad support across the political spectrum and it’s a good bet they’re here to stay. For example, the popular USDOT surface transportation grant variously known as TIGER, BUILD, and most recently RAISE, has dispensed $15 billion over the 16 years it has been in existence.

Similarly, water/wastewater funding enjoys broad support and is unlikely to diminish.

4. Look Out for #1

Pursue your own goals, rather than those of whoever’s in charge. Review your capital budget and revisit long-term unmet community goals to determine where grant funding will have the greatest local impact. Pursuing a new grant category that may be short-lived (especially when there is no history of local need or support) is unlikely to achieve memorable change.

5. Buckle Up

In addition to federal uncertainty, multiple states are forecasting staff cuts and shrinking grant funding. All the more reason to hire an experienced, GPC-certified grant professional for your pursuits.

With pandemic funding, the federal infrastructure bill (IIJA) and the Inflation Reduction Act all winding down, state-level general fund spending is expected to decline 6% from last year, according to a Pew Charitable Trust report. Pennoni’s grant funding experts are available to prepare strong, well-documented grant applications for a competitive advantage among stiff competition for federal, state, and local funds.