Einstein’s Alley, an organization named after Princeton’s most famous immigrant, is accepting nominations for its fifth annual Immigrant Entrepreneur Awards through Friday, July 14. The awards will be presented on Wednesday, September 13, from 8 to 11:30 a.m. at a Princeton Regional Chamber of Commerce/Middlesex County Regional Chamber of Commerce Global Opportunities Summit, “Building Bridges to Business Connections,” at the Doubletree Hotel in Princeton.
The awards are meant to highlight the important contributions of immigrants, who generate an estimated $6.2 billion in business income in the state. Foreign-born individuals like the group’s 2014 winner, Mario Casabona, CEO of Tech Launch, 2015 winner Iftekhar Hossain of IH Engineering, and 2016 winner Jose “Pepe” Garcia of Maverick Building Services have created more than one in three new businesses in recent years, ranking New Jersey behind only California, New York, and Florida.
NJIEA is a coalition of New Jersey groups, including Einstein’s Alley along with regional and bi-national chambers of commerce, immigrant advocacy groups, and other community organizations joining to celebrate the important role of immigrants in today’s economy and to honor the contributions of immigrant business leaders to their communities.
The group believes that rather than send qualified foreign-born advance-degree graduates of U.S. colleges and universities back home to compete against U.S. businesses, Congress should encourage these individuals to stay in the United States by offering them permanent resident status.
The group advocates expanding the H-1B visa program, which makes available to highly trained professionals in fields across the business sector. A significant portion of H-1B filing fees fund education and training programs to enhance the skills of U.S. workers, particularly in the technology fields.
To nominate someone for the award, visit www.princetonchamber.net/njiea/#.
