Nashville State, Bridge to a Four-Year Degree

The CEO of the Nashville Business Incubation Center says she wouldn’t be where she is today if it weren’t for Nashville State Community College.

Raised by a single mother, Angela Crane-Jones knew in high school that her ultimate goal was to graduate from a four-year school, but had limited means to accomplish this and didn’t want to go into debt.

After graduating from John Overton High School, she briefly attended an out-of-state institution, but ran into a few barriers, which precipitated a move back to Nashville. It was upon her return home when she enrolled at then Nashville State Tech. With several classes and college credit under her belt, she transferred to Tennessee State University, where she earned her Bachelor of Business Administration and Master of Arts in Administration and Supervision.

“I wouldn’t be where I am, if it weren’t for Nashville State,” Crane-Jones said. “Whether I am mentoring high school students or adults, I always recommend the College as a great, viable option. To reach my personal education goal, Nashville State was a bridge.”

Crane-Jones’ niece is a student at the Southeast campus in Antioch.

In her role as CEO, Crane-Jones excels at helping entrepreneurs accelerate the development and growth of their enterprise at the Nashville Business Incubation Center. Under her leadership, she developed a five-year, academic-based entrepreneurship curriculum to help guide small businesses through four growth stages with assignments, samples, and milestones. Collectively, these client companies created 222 new jobs, generated over $70.2 million in sales, and witnessed a 48 percent total sales increase upon completion of the five-year program.

Prior to joining NBIC, Crane-Jones was the owner and operator of two Dairy Queen Franchise locations. 

She serves on the board of the Nashville Farmers Market, International Business Innovation Association, March of Dimes, and Nashville Cable.

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