College of Charleston re-opens entrepreneurship center

The College of Charleston Center for Entrepreneurship is re-opening with a new director, David Desplaces.

The center will be a resource for entrepreneurs and will help them start and grow businesses through partnerships with other Lowcountry resources, like the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce, the Small Business Administration and the Charleston Digital Corridor.

Brenda Dispenza will be the center’s assistant director.

“Entrepreneurship is important to the Lowcountry, to the state and beyond, and we are excited that David will be leading the center,” said Alan Shao, dean of the School of Business, in a news release. “With his experience and energy, I’m confident that it will be a great success.”

Desplaces has served as the Middle East affairs trade mission specialist for the S.C. Department of Commerce, launched the Institute for Entrepreneurship and Economic Development at the University of Hartford and co-founded Possibilities without Borders, a nonprofit that helps with international service projects.