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Office of Business Opportunity
About Us
Vision:
The Office of Business Opportunity’s vision is to eliminate systemic barriers to prosperity and economic opportunity in the Greater Houston region.
Mission:
The Office of Business Opportunity is committed to cultivating an inclusive and competitive economic environment in the City of Houston by promoting the success of small businesses and developing Houston’s workforce, with a special emphasis on historically underutilized businesses and disenfranchised individuals.
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About the Interim Director
Cylenthia Hoyrd, is a native of Birmingham, Alabama who has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology with a minor in Business Management from Talladega College, and a Master of Public Administration with a concentration in Human Services from Northern Illinois University.
Her career began in Chicago Illinois as a Program Monitor for the Illinois Department of Public Health providing technical assistance and training to non-profits offering public health case management.
She worked as a Director of their Early Childhood Education and Maternal Child Health for Catholic Charities, successfully managing the largest Head Start program in the City of Chicago and the first WIC immunization program for the Chicago Dept. of Public Health. Cylenthia was hired by the Chicago Housing Authority as the Chief of Resident Programs where she revamped resident services by converting workforce development, resident owned business, and family support services for its 25,000 residents to a one-stop Service Connector Model.
In 2000 Cylenthia was appointed by the Mayor of Chicago to Assistant Commissioner for the Mayor’s Senior Initiatives at the Chicago Department on Aging. At the helm of the Mayor’s Senior Initiatives, she led the design construction and opening of ten award-winning Senior Satellite Centers, developed affordable single-family housing for grandparents raising their grandchildren, and developed a comprehensive senior well-being plan for disaster in a city serving over 200,000 seniors.
In 2007 as a Project Lead for the Georgia SHINES Portal she developed training materials and planned and implemented training for 72 counties for the State of Georgia Department of Human Services. Cylenthia became an Adjunct Professor in Grant Writing and Community Assessment for the University of Phoenix.
Ms. Hoyrd joined the Houston Public Library as an Administration Manager leading projects like the Broadbannd Technology Opportunity Program, a library and community college partnership, and Cafecollege Houston a college access center that under her management helped make college attendance a reality for over 1,200 students in its first year. She founded a consulting firm in 2017 that provides professional business consulting and government grant services to clients all across the United States.
Most reccently, Cylenthia was the grant writer and lead for staff engagement programs for the pharmacy and lab departments at Harris Health System.
Service to God and her community are very important to Cylenthia. She works with the Wheeler Avenue Baptist Church in the Avenues to Employment ministry to support workforce development and career changes; the Prayer Ministry where she intercedes on behalf of those needing prayer; the Divorce Care Ministry that helps people map out their lives after divorce; and the Social Justice Ministry advocating for criminal justice reform. She founded the LeadHer Tour a women’s empowerment network that convenes successful Black women from across the country to network, learn, and grow together. In 2021 Cylenthia became the Houston Chapter coordinator for Crime Survivors for Safety and Justice. In this role she advocates for safe neighborhoods in Houston, supports crime survivors with counseling opportunities and events to celebrate their survival.
She is the mother of four beautiful daughters who are the joy of her life.