NWLA APEX Folds Free AI Classes Into Federal Contracting

NWLA APEX hosted two beginner sessions on September 9, 2026, and asked owners to bring a laptop or tablet. The class was free, required no prior AI work, and carried the name Small Business bAIsics Training.

The office that ran it is not a generic startup lab. It is a Department of Defense-funded contracting shop at 400 Edwards St. in Shreveport, and the syllabus belongs to a national U.S. Chamber program backed by Google.org.

NWLA APEX Put AI on a Contracting Calendar

Dr. DeShana Hall, a contract specialist at the Northwest Louisiana APEX Accelerator, was the local contact, at 318-677-2505. The September listing called the day beginner-friendly for owners, founders, and anyone who wanted the basics, with two sittings so people could pick a slot.

That Tuesday was the second local round, not the first. On July 29, 2026, Hall and the Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce put the same course in the science lecture auditorium at LSU Shreveport, behind the science building.

TWO ROUNDS IN SHREVEPORT

1. July 29, 2026: Three two-hour sittings at LSU Shreveport, 8:30 to 10:30 a.m., 1:00 to 3:00 p.m., and 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., open without Chamber or APEX membership.
2. September 9, 2026: Two sessions under the NWLA APEX listing, laptop or tablet required, no prior AI experience required.
3. September 10, 2026: Local television aired a recap of the Small Business A.I. training hosted by NWLA APEX.

Hall had previewed the July hours as soup-to-nuts briefings on key concepts, tools, prompts, and everyday uses. She also flagged a safety block so shops would not dump customer lists, budgets, or donor rolls into a chat window.

What Is an APEX Accelerator?

An APEX Accelerator is a no-cost counseling office that helps firms sell to federal, state, and local buyers. NWLA APEX covers ten parishes: Bienville, Bossier, Caddo, Claiborne, Desoto, Lincoln, Natchitoches, Red River, Sabine, and Webster. The cooperative agreement is with the Department of Defense and the Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce.

Dr. Gayle Flowers directs the shop, at 318-677-2519. Jennifer Whittington is a contract specialist, at 318-677-2530. Counselors walk clients through registrations, certifications, and bid packages, and they run a Bid Match feed that scans more than 2,500 procurement sites a day.

The office has been in the region since 1987, first under the older Procurement Technical Assistance Center name. The September AI class sat on a calendar that otherwise looks like a contracting primer, which is the part a two-minute recap never shows.

THE APEX CALENDAR AROUND THE CLASS

A shop that learns a prompt on Tuesday can be in a FEMA carrier briefing the next morning and a buyer mixer in November. That sequence is the job. AI is one more skill on the path to a government invoice.

The Chamber Wants 40,000 Owners Trained

Small Business B(AI)sics is the national course behind the Shreveport name. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation opened enrollment on April 29, 2026, with a goal to equip 40,000 small businesses. The October 9, 2025 launch set that target over three years, through in-person workshops and a self-paced hub on the Chamber’s CO- platform.

Google.org is the money partner. The company’s October 8, 2025 announcement put $5 million from Google.org into the work through the AI Opportunity Fund. Maggie Johnson, global head of Google.org, said the research it cites shows most owners already believe AI can lift growth, speed, and customer contact, and that the gap is access to training.

Mike Morello, chief digital officer at the U.S. Chamber, said owners want help saving time, reaching customers, and staying in the fight, and that B(AI)sics is meant to turn that interest into tools they can use the same week, online or in the room. The Chamber also said small-business AI use has more than doubled since 2023, while a joint look with Hiring Our Heroes still found blocks on cost, skills, data readiness, and trust.

Free AI training for small business owners is now available through our Small Business B(AI)sics program, in partnership with @Google. Learn practical skills to improve your marketing, operations, and productivity. No tech background required. Take the virtual course today:… pic.twitter.com/2cNcNzonIZ

— U.S. Chamber (@USChamber) August 25, 2026

Louisiana’s in-person hosts on the Foundation roster are the Greater Shreveport Chamber and the Livingston Parish Chamber. Hosts are asked to aim for at least 50 owners in the room. The Foundation supplies the facilitator, curriculum, and privacy guidance; the local partner supplies the hall and the turnout.

THE NATIONAL BAISICS BET

• Headcount goal: 40,000 small businesses trained on foundational AI skills.
• Clock: Three years from the October 2025 launch, with courses live on April 29, 2026.
• Delivery: Self-paced modules on CO-, plus live rooms through more than 1,500 state and local chamber partners.
• Backer: $5 million from Google.org via the AI Opportunity Fund.

Shreveport is one stop on that map. The difference is who held the mic: a contract specialist whose day job is government work, not a vendor demo.

What the Two-Hour Class Covers

Hall told owners the two-hour block would run from basic terms and platforms through prompts that actually produce a usable draft. She listed marketing, sales, customer service, finance, and operations as the workbenches. She also said the room would not pick a brand for anyone.

We’re not gonna recommend any specific brand of AI. It’s just more of this is what’s out here. This is what’s available for you and you choose which is best for you and your company, which one will meet your needs better.

Dr. DeShana Hall, Contract Specialist, Northwest Louisiana APEX Accelerator

The national modules match that outline. Lesson one is a high-level pass on AI, key concepts, and common tools. Lesson two is prompting. Later units walk through use cases by business function, data security, and responsible use, plus a stack of ready-made prompts for marketing and sales.

WHAT THE ROOM IS BUILT TO TEACH

• Prompt craft: Turn a vague ask into a prompt that gets closer to the outcome you want.
• Daily desks: Try the same tools on marketing, sales, customer service, finance, and operations.
• Data fences: Keep customer lists, internal budgets, and donor rolls out of the chat.
• Tool choice: Survey what exists, then pick the product that fits the firm, with no house brand.

“It’s probably going to be a good idea for a lot of businesses to get on the AI bandwagon, because that is just the direction of things right now,” Hall said ahead of the July sittings. That is as close as the local pitch got to a hard sell. The rest was practical and cautious, which fits an office that already spends its week warning clients about registrations, foreign ownership rules, and cyber checklists.

DoD Logged $64.9 Billion Through These Offices

APEX Accelerators exist to widen the pool of firms that can sell to the Pentagon and to other public buyers. On December 2, 2025, the program posted results for April 1, 2024 through March 31, 2025. Federal funding was $55 million. Ninety-two accelerators served 26,232 new business clients, ran 6,284 training events, and helped those clients win 549,519 contracts and subcontracts.

Those awards were worth $64.9 billion in contracts, with an average value of $118,231. For the first time the program also tagged clients against the Department’s 14 Critical Technology Areas. It said 35% of new clients had capabilities in those fields, naming microelectronics, cybersecurity, AI, and space as examples.

APEX RESULTS, APRIL 2024 THROUGH MARCH 2025

Khalil Mack, then listed as director of the APEX Accelerators program, tied the year to training and to national-security priorities, not to a raw activity count.

This year’s results speak volumes about where the APEX Accelerators program is headed. We are delivering more strategic outcomes, not just more activity. By aligning with national security priorities, investing in training, and focusing on quality engagements, our network is helping the Department build a more resilient, innovative, and mission-ready industrial base.

Khalil Mack, Director, APEX Accelerators program, December 2, 2025 release

When a Shreveport contract specialist teaches prompts in that network, the Department is not running a hobby class. It is putting a Critical Technology Area on the same clipboard as SAM registration and a capability statement. Owners still get a free two-hour jump on email and ads. The office also gets a supplier base that can at least talk about AI without freezing.

A Free Seat Still Competes With Payroll

The course is short on purpose. Two hours, two or three sittings in a day, a laptop on the table, no pre-test. That design admits the real constraint, which is not curiosity. It is time.

A free AI class is only as useful as the hours an owner can steal from work that already pays. Invoicing, a job site, and a bid due at 5 p.m. do not pause for upskilling, and a two-hour block still has to beat those. That is why NWLA stacked sittings on one date, why July offered a 5:30 p.m. slot, and why the Chamber also built a self-paced track for people who will never sit through a weekday seminar.

Hall’s safety note is the other limit. A contractor who pastes a customer list or a pricing sheet into a public model can undo a year’s worth of bid work in one paste. The same office that wants more AI-literate vendors also spends its week on compliance. Brand-agnostic advice is a way to teach the tool without dragging a small firm onto a single vendor’s terms.

People who missed both Shreveport rounds still have the CO- modules, a completion certificate, and a web badge. They can also walk into 400 Edwards St. and ask for the slower help APEX actually exists to give: codes, registrations, and a bid that will survive a contracting officer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is an APEX Accelerator the same thing as the old PTAC?

Yes. APEX Accelerators are the current name for the offices long known as Procurement Technical Assistance Centers. The Department of Defense still funds them through cooperative agreements with local hosts, and NWLA APEX’s public materials still carry a DoD funding line and a disclaimer that the content is not a Department endorsement.

Do I need to be a Chamber member to take Small Business B(AI)sics?

Hall said the July 29 sittings were open to people who were not Chamber members and not APEX clients, with registration strongly encouraged. The September 9 listing added no membership filter and asked only for a laptop or tablet, curiosity, and a willingness to learn.

Can I get a certificate if I missed the Shreveport rooms?

The in-person class is a live workshop. The Chamber’s self-paced B(AI)sics course on CO- issues a course certificate and a web badge after you finish, and the trainee kit also includes email-signature art. Questions on that track go to CO-Learn@uschamber.com.

What is the Bid Match program at NWLA APEX?

Bid Match is a daily search run for clients. The office says it electronically scans more than 2,500 government procurement websites and pulls open bids that match a firm’s capabilities, then counselors help with the package those hits require.

What is Project Spectrum doing on the same calendar?

NWLA APEX scheduled Introduction to Project Spectrum for Industry on November 4, 2026, as a contracting-side briefing, not an AI lab. Project Spectrum is the Department’s cyber-readiness help for firms that want government work, which is why it sits beside Mentor-Protege, LYNX, and the November 5 buyer mixer rather than inside the bAIsics syllabus.

The September 9 rooms are closed. On November 5, 2026, the same office will put small firms in the LSUS University Center Ballroom with local buyers, which is the meeting the AI Tuesday was built to make less intimidating.