College of Business finds ideal partner to co-host women’s conference

September 6, 2023 - DENTON - Dewaynna Horn, PhD saw a unique opportunity to connect the Texas Woman’s Houston campus with a local Houston women’s organization.  

In June, the TWU Houston Institute of Health Sciences hosted the Women's Business Enterprise Alliance (WBEA) Women’s Business Leadership Conference. The WBEA serves over 94 counties in Texas with women business enterprise certification, business consultations, training, networking and recognition designed to spark growth in business sustainability and diverse suppliers.

Horn, an associate dean at TWU’s College of Business, recognized that the College of Business’s mission of developing women as business leaders aligned with the WBEA’s commitment to increasing opportunities for women-owned businesses.

“With our involvement and support of the WBEA conference, we helped facilitate invaluable connections between WBEA, corporate members and government agencies,” Horn said. “In the process, we were also able to build awareness of the presence, mission and programs at the Houston campus.”

Horn met April Day, PhD, the WBEA President, at the She Said 18 Conference, an event that brings together local, national and international brands who share an interest and mission to empower women. They bonded over their passion of networking and building relationships with organizations that support women. Over the past few years, they have looked for ways for their organizations to  jointly support women in business. 

“We saw a perfect opportunity and a win-win situation for TWU COB and WBEA to partner as hosts of this conference,” Horn said. 

At the conference, more than a 100 attendees learned how to start, grow and scale their businesses.  

“The day was filled with celebrations of milestones, award ceremonies for business accomplishments, pitch sessions, direct links to mentors/mentees and announcements of important opportunities,” Horn said. 

In the future, Horn is hoping to explore more opportunities with entrepreneur development and continuous education. 

“It was a natural fit to have the College of Business as an educational partner for WBEA,” Horn said.