In honor of Veterans Day, the Louisiana Small Business Development Center at the University of Louisiana at Monroe will offers veterans and active military service members a seminar to help them take advantage of the latest business assistance and resources Thursday, Nov. 13, from 6-8 p.m. at the ULM Administration Building, room 2-105.

The LSBDC at ULM will present the “SBA Patriot Express Loan Program,” free of charge. E. C. Coffrey, lead business development specialist with the U.S. Small Business Administration, and Dr. Paul Dunn, center director of the LSBDC at ULM, will speak at the program. Individuals may register online at www.lsbdc.org or call 318-342-1224.

The Patriot Express is a SBA loan available to help veterans and other members of the military community start and expand their small businesses. The new Patriot Express is a streamlined loan of up to $500,000, which can be used for most business purposes. The loan is designed for veterans, service-disabled veterans, soldiers leaving active-duty, reservists, National Guard members, spouses of service members in these categories, and widowed spouses of service members or veterans who died during service or from a service-related disability.

The LSBDC offers a full-range of services to help veterans and soldiers start, grow and expand their small businesses. LSBDC consultants offer free confidential business consulting, low-cost entrepreneurial training, and online resources to help small business owners start, grow and expand their companies.