WELDON — As the new director of the Small Business Center at Halifax Community College, Mark A. Stewart wants to help Valley businesses reach their potential.

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Stewart started the position July 1 with 500 business cards the college ordered for him — he plans to visit all the businesses in the Valley and hand those cards out.

“I don’t want them in my desk,” Stewart said. “In order to get rid of them, I have to give them away. And I don’t plan on giving them to faculty and staff here because they already know who I am.”

With Interstate-95 providing the area with many visitors, Stewart wants to help businesses provide those visitors with the right first-experience to keep them coming back.

“I want to increase the value of customer service in the community,” Stewart said.

He plans to also help area towns look at their value and not see themselves as just a small town.

“Small towns are gold mines,” Stewart said. “They don’t realize how strong they are.”

Stewart’s experience in consulting, contract management, budget administration, hiring and training staff and building partnerships with the educational and business community played a role in him being selected for the job.

For 10 years he has owned his own consulting business with clients throughout North Carolina, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh and Washington, D.C.

HCC President Dr. Ervin Griffin Sr. said Stewart came highly recommended and is very energetic.

“They (the public) will be pleased with what he has to offer Valley businesses,” Griffin said.

Stewart has always had a strong interest in business.

When he was in the fifth grade, he started attending General Electric union meetings with his parents.

He admits to being fanatic about contracts and negotiations.

“I was going to these meetings like I was a member,” he said.

This led Stewart to start reading company portfolios and learning about stock dividends.

“By my senior year in high school, I was like Alex P. Keaton (on the TV show, Family Ties),” Stewart said.

His plan was to be a corporate attorney, but the death of his twin brother changed his focus.

Stewart has a Bachelor’s in Criminal Justice from Edinboro University in Edinboro, Pa., a Master’s in Business Administration from Eastern University in St. David, Pa., and a Master’s in Human Resources Development from Villanova University, Villanova, Pa.

Since he started at HCC, he has been acclimating himself to the school and the area.

“I am very, very, very good at what I do and once I learn the rules, I may be shaking some feathers,” he said.

He stressed if businesses need training for their employees, to talk with him about their needs.

For example, if a course or training opportunity is needed, he could potentially set one up.

“Or if they want to travel and the interest is there, we possibly could have a satellite site. We will do whatever it takes to get things done.”

Stewart is also interested in creating opportunities for high school students through youth entrepreneurship and other areas.

“I got a lot of work to do,” he said. “My goal is not to sit behind a desk, but to get the college out there.”

If you would like to contact Mark Stewart, call  the Small Business Center at Halifax Community College at 252-536-7274.