Real People, Real Businesses
SURE℠ Graduation Brings Together Student Consultants, Houston Small Business Owners
Success is built when you empower others to believe in their vision and give them the tools to make it possible — that's the foundation of the Stimulating Urban Renewal through Entrepreneurship (SURE℠) Program at the University of Houston C. T. Bauer College of Business.
Housed within the college's Musa and Khaleda Dakri Center for Economic Inclusion and led by Founding Director and Professor Saleha Khumawala, the program recently held a graduation ceremony that brought together Bauer student consultants with more than 200 small business owners and their families, friends and loved ones.
"Without you, there would be no SURE℠ Program.”
This annual event is held to honor the heart of SURE℠: the dedicated student consultants who put in the work, and the entrepreneurs who place their faith and trust in them, Khumawala said.
“I am filled with deep gratitude,” she said, addressing the graduating class. “I am both honored and humbled to be standing here today. Without you, there would be no SURE℠ Program.”
At the graduation ceremony, outstanding student consultants were recognized across the Fall 2025 and Spring 2026 semesters. These students were chosen based on the positive feedback they received from their entrepreneurs and their overall performance in class, said SURE℠ Program Professor of Practice Esther Bailey.
The innovative, award-winning program structure gives Bauer students the opportunity to step into consultant roles of their own "firms," where they work with a small group of local business owners to mentor and guide them in the process of developing and writing a business plan. Aspiring local entrepreneurs are given the opportunity to learn foundational business skills and to benefit from executives who volunteer their time and expertise by lecturing in class.
At the graduation ceremony, entrepreneurs who won Best Business Model and Best Pitch Presentation across the fall and spring were selected to present their elevator pitches at graduation.
Kyra Brown, founder of the clothing company Resilient Grace, won the Spring 2026 Best Pitch Presentation. She said that her time in the SURE℠ Program helped ground her and gave her a solid foundation to advance her creativity, education and business.
“Our future is very bright because we have the tools we need."
Since its inception in 2012, the program has educated more than 2,300 entrepreneurs, helped launch more than 1,420 businesses, created more than 3,300 jobs and left a total economic impact of $501 million USD, shared Bauer Dean Xianjun Geng.
“The influence it has had on the community is astonishing,” Geng said. “There is nowhere else I’d rather be tonight.”
“I have a whole new family out of this experience. There are so many other opportunities as graduates of the program that are now open to us.”
“The honest truth is when I applied, my business was just an idea. I didn’t have a word on paper. They helped me develop my brand. I realized the importance of just writing things down, even if it's wrong, because then at least you have something to build from.”
“It walks you through the process, so you don’t have to go, then stop, back up and start again. It gives a great foundation to build your business and make it profitable.”
“SURE℠ has helped me figure out what's necessary to get started. I already had an idea of a business plan, but it helped me fine tune it and put it together. Then it gave me a lot more insight into how much money I'll actually need to start the business, because that's something that I've never really looked into.”
“SURE℠ helped me refine my business plan. They helped me develop an understanding of the amount of money it's going to take for me to scale up to the vision that I have. But it was a great experience; I definitely learned a lot about myself and my business in this process.”
The reputation of the SURE℠ Program precedes itself, Geng said, having heard of it before he was welcomed in as the new Bauer dean more than a year ago.
“When I was on the outside looking in, I asked myself, ‘What is the secret behind SURE℠’s success?’” Geng said. “Now that I’ve been here a year, and I’ve seen how it works, I can say it is because it stays true to its principles. It is experiential learning, but there are real people, real businesses and real students behind its advancement.”
There are real people, real businesses and real students behind its advancement.”
Along with recognizing the accomplishments of its graduating entrepreneurs, SURE℠ also welcomed governmental officials U.S. Rep. Christian Menefee, City of Houston’s Deputy Controller Emad Tahir and UH Vice President for Neighborhood & Strategic Initiatives Elwyn Lee.
Additionally, Andrew Cobos, who through his Cobos Law Firm awards scholarship to outstanding student consultant every year, and other significant members of the community were recognized for their continued contributions to the program and the impact they have made over the last academic year.
Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church Senior Pastor Rev. Marcus Cosby, Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church Executive Pastor and Operations Director Rev. Alexander Johnson and UH Law Center’s Entrepreneurship and Community Development Clinic Director Chris Heard each received SURE℠ Appreciation Awards.
Keynote speaker Chris Williams, founder of Lucille’s Hospitality Group and executive director of Lucille’s 1913, shared how he built his business off the legacy of his great-grandmother, Lucille B. Smith, who believed everyone deserves a seat at the table.
He passed down words of wisdom from his great-grandmother to the graduating class as they look toward the future of their businesses: “Always nurture your creativity and pursue your passions vigorously.”
UH Vice President for Neighborhood & Strategic Initiatives Elwyn Lee (left) and Lucille’s Hospitality Group Founder Chris Williams (right)
UH Vice President for Neighborhood & Strategic Initiatives Elwyn Lee (left) and Lucille’s Hospitality Group Founder Chris Williams (right)
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