SALISBURY, N.C. — The Small Business Center (SBC) at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College is registering students for two fall courses aimed at helping small business owners grow their customer base and profits.

            The SBC will offer “Starting a Business” from 6 to 9 p.m., on Thursdays, beginning Sept. 13 and running through Oct. 4. Students will learn how to develop an idea into a successful start-up business plan. Chris Murphy, a proven and highly successful entrepreneur and author, will teach the course. Murphy has started 16 companies and has years of experience working with students and other small business owners. Murphy emphasizes one simple principle: “You don’t have to spend a lot of money to create your own business.”

            The class will meet in Building 200, room 251, on RCCC’s North Campus, in Salisbury. Tuition is $55. The course textbook is $30.

            The SBC also will offer “Low Cost-No Cost Marketing for Your Business” 6 to 9 p.m., on Tuesdays, beginning Oct. 9 and going through Nov. 11. The course will cover the methods of fast-growing companies to reach their customers and grow their business. Sherre DeMao, founder and owner of SLD Unlimited Marketing/PR Inc., will teach the course. She has helped start-up and small-to-medium entrepreneurial companies become smarter marketers by providing creative and innovative marketing guidance and solutions.

            The class will meet at RCCC’s Cabarrus Business & Technology Center in Concord. The course tuition is $55, which covers all class materials.

            The Small Business Center at RCCC is a community-based provider of education, training, counseling, information and referral, assisting entrepreneurs with business ideas and existing small business ventures.

            For more information about the SBC and its programs, contact Heidi Whitesell, SBC director, at whitesellh@rowancabarrus.edu or 704-216-3526. For more information about upcoming SBC seminars and classes, many of which are free, contact Angie Corriher at 704-216-3513, or corrihera@rowancabarrus.edu.

           Rowan-Cabarrus Community College is a comprehensive, community-based institution of higher learning, serving the citizens of Rowan and Cabarrus Counties. RCCC offers approximately 40 programs of study in business, health and human services and engineering technologies at multiple campus locations. RCCC annually provides more than 2,000 course offerings, serving an enrollment of approximately 20,000 adult students. RCCC programs include an associate degree in arts and sciences, an associate degree in applied science, and diploma and certificate programs focusing on workforce training, continuing education and basic skills education.

           In addition, RCCC provides the education and job-training programs needed to meet many of the workforce demands of the North Carolina Research Campus, under construction in Kannapolis, N.C.

           For complete details, see the RCCC website at www.rowancabarrus.edu.