Panelists discuss the Excel Project, a collaborative research initiative between Coppin State University (CSU) and the Baltimore Development Corp. that aims to identify and nurture young entrepreneurs. From left to right: Ron Williams, director of CSU’s Center for Strategic Entrepreneurship and principal investigator of the EXCEL Project; Rashad Staton, executive director of Community Law In Action and a participant in the EXCEL Project; Claudia Thorne, assistant professor in CSU’s Department of Social Work and member of the EXCEL research team; Omani Placide, a young entrepreneur and EXCEL Project Advisory Board member and Hennither Gant, moderator, owner of Career Image Solutions and a Coppin alumna. (Photo by Reuben Greene)