FLORENCE — If the full U.S. Senate passes the Fiscal Year 2025 Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act, the University of North Alabama could receive $3 million to expand its entrepreneurial center, in its Sanders College of Business and Technology. 

U.S. Sen. Katie Britt, a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, made the announcement last week after the legislation was passed by the committee. It now awaits consideration by the Senate.

The University of North Alabama would use the funds to expand the Joel R. Anderson Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Studies, which offers access to space, resources, and mentorship to UNA students and local companies to help start or grow their businesses.

“The University of North Alabama is investing in its students’ future as business owners, innovators, and entrepreneurs,” Britt (R-Montgomery) said in a release. “The positive impact of this funding would reach far outside the Shoals. Elevating the Joel R. Anderson Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Studies is a strategic investment into Alabama’s and America’s future – the students who will grow our economy, create good-paying jobs, and develop the products and technologies of tomorrow.”