Gateway Community College student Shamecca Davis of Rootuals took second place and a $500 cash award in the inaugural Minority Small Business Showcase held Oct. 17 at the SoNo Collection mall in Norwalk. Rootuals offers natural hair care services that promote healthy hair, "one rootual at a time." Former Gateway student Damail Dunlap of the Damali Society (makeup accessories) also exhibited.

"We are proud to have both Shamecca Davis and Damail Dunlap as students at Gateway," said Rose Luglio, professor and program coordinator, Entrepreneurial Studies at Gateway. "Damail is presently taking our BES 239 Business Plan course at Gateway with our adjunct instructor, Fred Welk, and has been continually mentored by Mike Roer as our EIR. Damail took Gateway's BES 218 Entrepreneurship course last year."

The Minority Small Business Showcase was produced by the Minority Entrepreneur Training Association (META), managed by Marcia Fountain. META was founded in 1998 by Fountain and is a non-profit, tax exempt membership organization with a mission to promote and develop entrepreneurship and economic development for minorities in the State of Connecticut. The event was sponsored by the Entrepreneurship Foundation, a 501c3 whose mission is to provide effective resources for educators and entrepreneurs.