Lieutenant Governor Sabina Matos, Diversity Business Exhibit Open Applications for Annual Youth Entrepreneurship Boot Camp

Published on Friday, May 01, 2026

PROVIDENCE, RI – Lieutenant Governor Sabina Matos and the Diversity Business Exhibit today opened applications for the fourth annual Lt. Governor’s "Back to School, Back to Business!" Youth Entrepreneurship Boot Camp, a free entrepreneurship education program for Rhode Island high school students. Since 2023, the Boot Camp has educated nearly 400 students from 15 school districts with foundational skills in business ownership and social entrepreneurship. 

“Rhode Island is powered by our locally-owned businesses. To sustain that strength, we need a new generation of entrepreneurs with the vision, skills, and confidence to turn ideas into opportunity. The Youth Entrepreneurship Boot Camp helps build that pipeline by equipping young people to innovate, lead, and create the businesses that will shape the future of our communities," said Lieutenant Governor Matos.

“We’re building Rhode Island’s Youth-to-Entrepreneurship pipeline, aligned with workforce development and economic mobility, with the Lt. Governor’s Office as a key partner in scaling it statewide,” said Doris Adesuyi, Executive Director, Diversity Business Exhibit.

The Lt. Governor’s Youth Entrepreneurship Boot Camp is an experiential learning program designed to introduce high school students to entrepreneurship as a career path. Participating students will learn directly from real Rhode Island entrepreneurs, develop a business model through practical activities, and support each other’s learning in collaborative workshops. 

“This boot camp opens doors for every young person to access meaningful opportunities, sparking entrepreneurship early while equipping them with the tools and platform to grow into innovative thinkers, bold problem solvers, and the next generation of future leaders,” said Phanida Phivilay, Johnston School Committee and former Providence School Board member.

The Boot Camp will be held on Friday, September 11^th, 2026, from 9 a.m.-2 p.m. Interested school administrators, educators, coaches, and youth program directors are encouraged to apply on behalf of youth in their classes or programs. Applicants may reserve up to 20 student spots, with rolling acceptance until capacity is reached or applications close on Friday, August 28, 2026. The application can be found online at https://diversitybusinessexhibit.com/youth-entrepreneurship-boot-camp/.

The Boot Camp is provided free of charge thanks to the generous sponsors of the Diversity Business Exhibit. The Diversity Business Exhibit is an annual Providence-based conference of socially and economically disadvantaged micro entrepreneurs, small business owners, nonprofit leaders and creatives in Southern New England. The 2026 Diversity Business Exhibit will be held September 11^th and 12^th, 2026 at the Rhode Island Convention Center & Newport Mansions.

As Lieutenant Governor, Sabina Matos has prioritized addressing Rhode Island’s succession-planning crisis by preparing a new generation of small business owners. In addition to the Lt. Governor’s Youth Entrepreneurship Boot Camp, Lieutenant Governor Matos has distributed over tens of thousands of dollars in scholarships to Rhode Island students through the Lt. Governor’s Entrepreneurship Challenge. To create new avenues for Rhode Island workers to become business owners, the Lieutenant Governor has also introduced legislation to create a Rhode Island Center for Employee Ownership and established  the Business Enterprise Succession Task Force.