Jeffrey Kyei-Asare, Class of ’25, knew he belonged in the business world, he just needed a chance to prove it. He got his chance at Smith, enrolling in fall 2023 after transferring from Montgomery College.
Kyei-Asare earned a UMD Transfer Scholarship, among others, in recognition of his outstanding academic achievements. He says, “Scholarships made it possible for me to be in rooms I knew I belonged in and to earn an education I could make the most of.”
The finance and information systems student is applying classroom lessons to his startup—and it’s paying off. StreetLoveDMV, a streetwear clothing store, earned first place in the 2024 Pitch Dingman Competition’s Main Street Track, earning $20,000 and the chance to sell wares at Shop Made in Maryland.
Kyei-Asare was chosen to participate in the 2023 Young Men of Color Small Business Roundtable at the White House, led by Vice President Kamala Harris . “We fully understand that when our entrepreneurs and our small-business leaders are strong, America is strong,” the vice president remarked.
“I always recognize that I’m not just doing this for myself. Someone believed in me, someone chose to bet on me, and I will take advantage of that opportunity,” Kyei-Asare says.
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About the University of Maryland's Robert H. Smith School of Business
The Robert H. Smith School of Business is an internationally recognized leader in business education and cutting-edge research. The school’s world-class faculty facilitate experiential learning opportunities rooted in the real world. Smith students learn to think like entrepreneurs, prepared to drive positive impact. The school offers undergraduate, online and on-campus business master's, full-time, part-time, online and executive MBA, plus PhD and DBA degree programs, and non-degree and executive education programs. Where Smith leads, the future follows.