Led by Prairie View A&M University Extension and supported by Amegy Bank, the BID Academy brought together more than 25 business owners for an experience focused on strengthening their companies and preparing for larger opportunities.
For the business owners who participated in Prairie View A&M University‘s Businesses In Development Academy in 2025, the experience went beyond a traditional classroom. More than 25 entrepreneurs registered as students, bringing different industries, levels of experience and perspectives into the program. Some of those same business owners would later step forward as featured speakers, creating an environment where participants learned from professionals and community leaders as well as from one another.
The Businesses In Development, or BID, Academy is part of Prairie View A&M University Extension’s Community and Economic Development work. The program helps entrepreneurs strengthen the foundation of their businesses while developing a clearer understanding of government contracting, certifications, financial preparation, marketing, and the systems required to support growth.
For the 2025 class, much of that experience was led by Johnny D. Gentry III, a Community and Economic Development Extension Agent with Prairie View A&M University Extension. Gentry served as a central leader throughout the Academy, helping guide participants through the program and connecting the lessons being taught to the everyday realities of running a business.
His role helped make the Academy more than a collection of presentations. Participants had an opportunity to ask questions, examine their own businesses, and build relationships with other entrepreneurs experiencing many of the same challenges. That connection became even more meaningful when some registered participants were invited to become featured speakers themselves, bringing their own experience into the classroom.
That exchange reflected an important part of the Academy’s approach. Business owners do not arrive in the room empty-handed. Many have already built companies, solved problems, worked with customers, and learned difficult lessons through experience. Giving participants an opportunity to share some of that knowledge created a setting where expertise could move in more than one direction.
The program remained focused on one central idea. Being skilled at the work does not automatically mean a business is ready for every opportunity available to it. Government contracting, in particular, requires more than finding a bid and submitting a price. Businesses must understand what agencies purchase, maintain accurate records, communicate their capabilities clearly, and have enough financial and operational capacity to perform if selected.
That is where the support of Amegy Bank became an important part of the Academy. Its involvement brought financial education into the larger discussion about contracting and business growth. A contract may create new revenue, but it can also require a company to cover payroll, equipment, supplies, and other expenses before receiving payment. Understanding cash flow, credit and access to capital therefore becomes part of preparing for the opportunity itself.
Amegy Bank leader Joey Laguaña-Aldinger brought his experience in small-business and SBA banking into conversations with participating entrepreneurs, helping connect business growth with financial preparation. Ralph Bonaventure has also continued to support the Academy and the entrepreneurs participating in it. Their involvement gave business owners access to financial perspectives they may need well beyond graduation.
The relationship between Johnny Gentry’s leadership and Amegy Bank’s support helped give the Academy a practical structure. Prairie View A&M University Extension provided the educational foundation and community connection, while banking professionals, business leaders, and other presenters brought experience from the environments entrepreneurs will encounter as they continue growing.
Community partners further expanded those conversations. Berry Dynamic Agency has contributed programming around business planning, marketing, market research, operational systems, artificial intelligence, and preparation for contracting opportunities. The agency’s work with participants emphasized the importance of organizing the business behind the opportunity instead of focusing only on attracting more customers or pursuing the next bid.
Berry Dynamic Agency Executive Director Abdul Foster also worked with participants around business growth, operations, and scalability. His contribution reinforced another lesson of the Academy: growth can create problems when the systems behind a company are not prepared to support it. A business may be able to secure more customers or win a larger opportunity, but that growth still has to be managed successfully.
Edwards Financial Group was also among the community partners connected to Academy programming, adding another perspective to the financial and business education available to participants. Combined with the entrepreneurs who became featured speakers themselves, the program brought several different forms of experience into one learning environment.
That variety matters because entrepreneurs rarely face only one challenge. One business owner may need stronger financial records before pursuing a contract. Another may need to improve a business plan or become certified. Another may have the experience to perform the work but struggle to explain the company’s capabilities clearly enough for a buyer to understand them.
BID Academy gives entrepreneurs space to recognize those gaps before they become larger barriers. It also encourages participants to think differently about the way they approach potential customers. Government agencies, corporations, and other buyers are not simply looking for businesses trying to make a sale. They are looking for companies that can solve a problem, meet requirements, and deliver what they promised.
For the more than 25 entrepreneurs registered in the 2025 Academy, completing the program represented more than learning how to search for government bids. Participants gained a clearer understanding of what buyers expect, where their own businesses may need additional preparation, and which relationships could help them continue developing after the classroom sessions ended.
Those relationships may ultimately be one of the strongest parts of the experience. Instead of attending a workshop and returning home with only a certificate, participants left connected to fellow entrepreneurs, Prairie View A&M University Extension leaders, banking professionals, and community partners. The fact that some students also became featured speakers reinforced the idea that the Academy itself was becoming a network of people who could continue learning from one another.
Graduation, therefore, was not really the end of the BID Academy experience. What happens next will look different for every business owner. Some may pursue certifications or government contracts. Others may strengthen their finances, improve their marketing, reorganize their operations, or spend more time preparing before submitting the next bid.
Each step reflects the larger purpose of the program: helping entrepreneurs become better prepared for opportunity before opportunity arrives.
For the BID Academy Class of 2025, the experience demonstrated what can happen when education, financial institutions, community partners, and business owners come together around economic growth. Prairie View A&M University Extension provided the foundation, Johnny Gentry led entrepreneurs through the experience, and Amegy Bank strengthened the program through financial education and the support of leaders including Joey Laguaña-Aldinger and Ralph Bonaventure. Berry Dynamic Agency, Edwards Financial Group, and participating entrepreneurs added additional knowledge to the room.
More than 25 business owners registered as students, but some also became teachers along the way. That may be one of the clearest reflections of what BID Academy accomplished in 2025, creating a space where entrepreneurs could learn, contribute, and leave better prepared for whatever opportunity comes next.
