02/03/2026
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Throughout Black History Month, CCHS students and educators are proud to showcase incredible leaders who influence both our local community and communities at large. ❤️💚🖤
LAUREN NICOLE CARTER
Lauren Carter is the Center Director for the Missouri Small Business Development Center (SBDC) at Lincoln University, driven by a passion for service, leadership, and helping people grow personally, professionally, and within their communities.
Being African American to her means carrying both pride and responsibility—honoring the resilience, creativity, and brilliance of Black people while contributing dignity, excellence, and progress to that legacy.
In her role, she helps entrepreneurs and small business owners start, grow, and sustain their businesses through guidance in business planning, financial strategy, marketing, and problem-solving, creating stability for families, jobs for others, and stronger local economies. She is also a community leader and advocate for opportunity, particularly for those without consistent access to resources, and serves on several nonprofit boards, including Juneteenth-Jefferson City, The Red Slipper Warrior Project, The Boys and Girls Club of Jefferson City, The Minority Business Council, and the JC Area Chamber of Commerce.
Lauren believes small businesses transform communities by building confidence, independence, and opportunity, and she strives to model leadership rooted in both strength and compassion. She has navigated challenges related to assumptions about her appearance, age, gender, and identity as a biracial woman by staying grounded, pursuing excellence, surrounding herself with mentors, and letting her work speak for itself.
She is most proud of the impact she has made through service—helping people turn ideas into real businesses, move past self-doubt, and build something meaningful—as well as becoming a leader who balances responsibility with integrity and humanity, and raising two daughters she is deeply proud of.
She stays motivated by focusing on purpose over outcomes, leaning on faith, discipline, and personal growth, and prioritizing mental health through rest, boundaries, and supportive relationships. Lauren emphasizes that African American men and women are not stereotypes, but diverse, intelligent, creative, compassionate, and powerful contributors to American culture and progress, with stories that include joy, leadership, innovation, and excellence.
Her advice to young African American males is to protect their minds and futures, choose discipline, practice emotional control and self-respect, seek mentors, build skills, reject limiting beliefs and recognize that their choices can change generations.
She hopes to leave a legacy of empowerment by helping people recognize their value, build stability and create meaningful lives, and wants her story to be remembered for perseverance, integrity, impact, and lifting others as she rose. Through her work at the SBDC and her involvement with Juneteenth-Jefferson City—which provides education on the history and meaning of Juneteenth, cultural celebration through events like the Juneteenth Heritage Festival, and philanthropic support through scholarships and community partnerships—Lauren remains committed to building a stronger Jefferson City where opportunity, knowledge, and support are accessible to all.
By: Jayanna
