INDIANAPOLIS — All through February, we have been shining a light on Black History.
A local middle school is doing the same by celebrating Black entrepreneurs in the Circle City.
Avondale Meadows Middle School held its annual Black History Celebration on Friday.
The program featured music, poetry reading, a fashion show, a wax museum, and a chance for students to shop from local Black-owned businesses.
“We partnered with some Black-owned businesses today to donate some food or give some partial donations to our students to taste Black excellence,” said Chatarra Moreland, a social worker at the school who’s also the city connects coordinator.
Dozens of students got the chance to learn not only shop but from entrepreneurs too.
“When I go over and buy stuff, I get to ask questions about how they get where they are,” said Tyrell Bell, an eighth grader who’s interested in opening his own shoe shop when he grows up.
Eight vendors were a part of the celebration this year at the middle school.
“It’s important that kids see us as business owners to know that they can do what we’re doing,” said Greg Smith, the Co-Owner of It’s on & Poppin Popcorn.
In Indianapolis, big strides have been made, but there still is a disparity gap in black business ownership.
“In other cultures, they have generations of people who’ve started businesses, and even had the connections with the bank to introduce their legacy to other people, we don’t always have that,” explained Anita Williams the Program Manager and Co-Founder of Indy Black Chamber of Commerce.
Avondale Meadows hopes this events shows their students it's OK to start dreaming big and dreaming early.
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“I think it’s great for our students to see black businesses doing well so that they see themselves within these black businesses,” Moreland told WRTV.
“It’s inspiring us kids and showing us if we put our mind to it, we can do anything,” added sixth grader La’Naia Gardner.
The school says in total about 275 people showed up in total including teachers, students, parents and business owners.
They hope to make the ceremony even bigger next year.
