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Dionne Griffin McGee, a Washington native, was named Rural Entrepreneur of the Year by the North Carolina Rural Center at the Rural Excellence Awards in March. Recipients were recognized for leadership, collaboration, entrepreneurship and banking. 

“I am fortunate to be able to do this work so it is not something I take lightly,” McGee said in talking about the “surreal”  and “emotional” experience of receiving Rural Entrepreneur of the Year. 

Rural Entrepreneur of the Year is awarded to an entrepreneur who has made significant contributions to their local economy through job creation, sales, revenue generation and community leadership. 

McGee was given the award, because of her dedication to helping women in rural counties create and sustain their small businesses. McGee is the founder of DG McGee Enterprises, a federally certified woman-owned program/project management firm specializing in tailored programming solutions. 

DG McGee Enterprises designs and hosts digital learning management system programs and cohorts under the R.O.A.R. University Umbrella for its clients. 

McGee is also the cohort director of the Eastern North Carolina Entrepreneurial Promise (ENCEP). ENCEP provides comprehensive support to small businesses owned by women and minorities in underserved areas, offering guidance through instruction, coaching, mentorship and strategic counsel. Because of its recent growth and reach across the state, ENCEP is now known as the North Carolina Entrepreneurial Promise. 

NCEP has assisted an array of businesses from food trucks to cleaning services to trucking companies. One of the most successful businesses NCEP has helped is a woman-owned trucking company out of Rocky Mount. Katrina Daley, owner of Timbs and Heels Trucking Company has expanded to include an academy of the same name that teaches women how to become truck drivers. Daley has also been able to connect with the community college system to assist with truck driving programs. 

McGee expresses deep gratitude to her partners, which include the National Institute of Minority Economic Development, Partner Community Capital, NC IDEA, and the Hayti Reborn Justice Movement. She also extends appreciation to her outstanding team, along with the collective of facilitators, mentors, and web designers whose contributions have been pivotal to the program’s success.

McGee extends her sincere gratitude to the NC Rural Center, led by President Patrick Woodie and his dedicated team. She appreciates the support of those who voted for her and acknowledges the invaluable guidance provided by her mentors, Gracie Johnson-Lopez and Roberta McCullough, whose mentorship has been instrumental in shaping her entrepreneurial path. McGee also emphasized the core focus of DG McGee Enterprises as a federally certified woman-owned program/project management firm specializing in tailored programming solutions.

McGee said her parents Velma Jones Dorsey and Larry Griffin, both Washington natives, are “extremely proud of her accomplishments.” 

McGee’s entrepreneurial endeavors also include authoring a debut book “Finding your ROAR,” speaking engagements, ROAR Conferences, retreats and real estate ventures.