New Jersey finalists for Ernst & Young entrepreneur award announced

Ernst & Young has announced the finalists for its Entrepreneur Of The Year award for the state of New Jersey. The group of entrepreneurs is made up of regional business owners, community leaders and individuals from the academic field. Winners will be announced during a gala event in Glenpointe, New Jersey, on June 24.

The company's Entrepreneur Of The Year program director for New Jersey, Stephen Gatto, called entrepreneurship "especially vital as our nation recovers from this recession." He added that the award finalists "create jobs in our area, encouraging healthy growth, development and innovation in the local economy."

After honoring regional entrepreneurs in June, Ernst & Young's Entrepreneur Of The Year Program will hold its national awards in November. The overall national U.S. winner then moves on to compete for the title of World Entrepreneur of the Year. The program is currently celebrating its 24th anniversary.

Entrepreneurs around the country are regularly recognized for their contributions. Perhaps the highest achievement is the U.S. Small Business Administration's National Small Business Person of the Year award, which was recently given to Waymon Armstrong of the company Engineering & Computer Simulations.