{"id":131039,"date":"2026-01-20T23:00:44","date_gmt":"2026-01-20T23:00:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/131039\/"},"modified":"2026-01-20T23:00:44","modified_gmt":"2026-01-20T23:00:44","slug":"the-dec-network-to-hold-11th-annual-state-of-entrepreneurship-event-jan-29-at-smu-dallas-innovates","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/131039\/","title":{"rendered":"The DEC Network To Hold 11th Annual State of Entrepreneurship Event Jan.\u00a029 at\u00a0SMU \u00bb Dallas Innovates"},"content":{"rendered":"

The DEC Network will host its 11th Annual State of Entrepreneurship event, presented by Bank of America, on January 29 at the SMU Collins Center.<\/p>\n

For more than a decade, the awards-focused event has served as a cornerstone for North Texas, The DEC Network said, bringing together entrepreneurs, investors, corporate leaders, and ecosystem builders to celebrate innovation and chart the future of entrepreneurship in the region.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cBank of America is committed to advancing North Texas\u2019 entrepreneurial ecosystem as presenting sponsor of the 11th Annual State of Entrepreneurship,\u201d Jennifer Chandler, Bank of America Dallas president, said in a statement. \u201cAs the nation\u2019s number one lender to small businesses, we combine our resources with The DEC Network\u2019s comprehensive approach to help turn ideas into thriving businesses and celebrate the resilience and creativity that define this community. After 11 years of collaboration, we remain focused on driving innovation and strengthening the region\u2019s business landscape.\u201d<\/p>\n

The State of Entrepreneurship brings together industry leaders and founders for an evening of insight, inspiration, and connection. Attendees will explore emerging trends, address key challenges facing entrepreneurs today, and discover new opportunities shaping North Texas\u2019s startup ecosystem.<\/p>\n

State of Entrepreneurship Awards<\/p>\n

The event also celebrates the people and organizations making an impact across the region with\u00a0its community-nominated and community-voted awards, which recognize excellence across the entrepreneurial ecosystem. This year\u2019s awards will honor individuals, companies, institutions, and civic leaders whose work is driving innovation, access to capital, and inclusive economic growth throughout North Texas.<\/p>\n

Award categories include:<\/p>\n

\u25cf Entrepreneur of the Decade<\/p>\n

\u25cf Event of the Year<\/p>\n

\u25cf Southern Sector Entrepreneur of the Year<\/p>\n

\u25cf Rising Entrepreneur of the Year<\/p>\n

\u25cf Female Entrepreneur of the Year<\/p>\n

\u25cf Male Entrepreneur of the Year<\/p>\n

\u25cf Startup Evangelist of the Year<\/p>\n

\u25cf University of the Year<\/p>\n

\u25cf Financial Institution of the Year<\/p>\n

\u25cf Large Corporation of the Year<\/p>\n

\u25cf Small\/Medium Corporation of the Year<\/p>\n

\u25cf City \/ EDC \/ Chamber of the Year<\/p>\n

\u25cf Foundation of the Year<\/p>\n

\u25cf Capital Access Champion of the Year<\/p>\n

\u25cf Ecosystem Builder of the Year<\/p>\n

Together, these honors highlight \u201cthe depth, diversity, and collaborative spirit that define North Texas entrepreneurship,\u201d The DEC Network said.<\/p>\n

The event is free and open to the public, offering a unique opportunity to network with peers, connect with decision-makers, and gain exclusive insights into the state of entrepreneurship in North Texas.<\/p>\n

Learn more and register here.<\/a><\/p>\n

Don\u2019t miss what\u2019s next. Subscribe\u00a0to\u00a0Dallas\u00a0Innovates.<\/p>\n

Track Dallas-Fort Worth\u2019s business and innovation landscape with our curated news in your inbox Tuesday-Thursday.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n

\tR E A D\u00a0\u00a0 N E X T\t<\/p>\n

\t\"nominate<\/a><\/p>\n

D CEO and Dallas Innovates have expanded The Innovation Awards 2026 with more individual and company categories this year. Now is your chance to be part of the region\u2019s defining recognition for innovators.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

From startup evangelists to visionary leaders, community-voted awards recognize excellence across the North Texas ecosystem.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Appearing in lifelike, life-size 3D realism on your next Grapevine Mills mall visit: an interactive encounter with characters like Sonic the Hedgehog, comedian Howie Mandel, a velociraptor, and more.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

At the Dallas Regional Chamber’s State of the Region event held in December, regional leaders addressed the opportunities and challenges of growth in North Texas\u2014from mobility and high-speed rail to prioritizing green space over highways to ensuring health care for the uninsured.<\/p>\n

\t\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Little Elm’s Sachchit Balamurugan, an incoming senior at TOPS, flew to Japan Friday to present his ACC cancer detection app at the International Young Researchers\u2019 Conference. He’s also won first place at a BPA national mobile app competition, won an award at the NASA Space App Challenge, started a nonprofit called Youth Opportunities in Tech Innovation\u2014and done lots, lots more.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The DEC Network will host its 11th Annual State of Entrepreneurship event, presented by Bank of America, on…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1148,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[12425,102,104,103,56245,33718,56246,56247,56248],"class_list":["post-131039","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-dallas","tag-bank-of-america","tag-dallas","tag-dallas-headlines","tag-dallas-news","tag-dec-network","tag-jennifer-chandler","tag-state-of-entrepreneurship-awards","tag-the-dec-network","tag-the-dec-networks-state-of-entrepreneurship-awards-2026"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131039","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=131039"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/131039\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1148"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=131039"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=131039"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=131039"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}