Entrepreneurial Development Systems for Rural America
Grant Recipients
In 2005 the W.K. Kellogg Foundation announced the names of six regional partnerships selected to receive grants to help advance the development of integrated systems supporting rural entrepreneurship. The $2 million grants, covering a three-year period, were awarded to:
- Empowering Business Spirit Initiative Collaborative, serving northern New Mexico counties, pueblos and tribes.
- Twenty partnering organizations will create a one-stop shop for potential and practicing entrepreneurs. The project's web portal already offers entrepreneurs an easy way to find information about partner organizations' services, regional events and news. The one-stop shop eventually will incorporate technical service providers, business capital lenders, educational institutions, government agencies and policy-centered organizations. The Regional Development Corporation www.rdcnm.org led the project team.
- Connecting Oregon for Rural Entrepreneurship Collaborative, serving Lake County, Lincoln County and northeast, southwest and north central Oregon.
- Working with 28 partnering organizations, Rural Development Initiatives Inc. will capitalize on strong local organizations involved in entrepreneurship activities and on the recent creation of the Oregon Office of Rural Policy. Plans include assessing the needs of entrepreneurs in each of five targeted communities, expanding services and crafting statewide policy recommendations. Targeted regions currently have entrepreneurship programs emphasizing such areas as sustainable forestry management and wood products, electronic commerce, youth entrepreneurship, sustainable tourism, wind energy, microenterprise and business incubation.
- Oweesta Collaborative, serving the Pine Ridge and Cheyenne River reservations of South Dakota (Lakota Sioux) and the Wind River Reservation in Wyoming (Eastern Shoshone and Northern Arapahoe).
- First Nations Oweesta Corporation and eight partner organizations will incorporate a network of volunteer and paid service providers, coaches and mentors to answer questions and provide one-on-one support to help Native American entrepreneurs start or grow businesses. The approach builds on the Lakota value of Wawókiye, generosity without expectation of return. Several of the partners are U.S. Treasury-certified native Community Development Financial Institutions, which provide access to capital, technical assistance and training to Native American entrepreneurs. The collaborative plans to raise at least $10 million in new capital to support businesses on the reservations.
- HomeTown Competitiveness Collaborative, serving 15 counties in Nebraska and the Winnebago, Omaha and Santee Sioux Indian reservations.
- HomeTown Competitiveness originated in 2002 to help rural communities identify goals and strategies focusing on four pillars for reversing economic decline: building leadership and community capacity, engaging young people, fostering local philanthropy and supporting entrepreneurship. With the Kellogg grant, the program will expand from seven to 15 counties. Communities served will be given access to comprehensive resources from the initiative's 12 partners but also must provide matching funds and local volunteer commitment. The Nebraska Community Foundation, Heartland Center for Leadership Development, Center for Rural Entrepreneurship and Center for Rural Affairs serve as the core partners in HomeTown Competitiveness with additional support from other organizations.
- Advantage Valley Entrepreneurship Development System Collaborative, serving eight counties in West Virginia, Boyd and Greenup counties in Kentucky and Lawrence County in Ohio.
- Advantage Valley Inc. and seven partners are leading this effort to increase entrepreneurship in the three-state Appalachian region. Advantage Valley last year initiated an entrepreneurship program based on the Entrepreneurial League System developed by Tom Lyons and Gregg Lichtenstein. Work through the Kellogg grant project will incorporate that system and expand the number of entrepreneurs who can be served. Plans include assisting entrepreneurs through coaching, networking, access to capital and markets, and public policy advocacy. Additional emphasis will be placed on increasing entrepreneurial education in the region's public schools and community colleges.
- North Carolina's Rural Entrepreneurship Development System, serving 85 rural counties of North Carolina, including seven rural Indian tribes.
- Led by the North Carolina Rural Center's Institute for Rural Entrepreneurship, the project builds on an existing partnership of state agencies, nonprofit organizations, universities and community colleges. While reaching statewide, the project will focus on regions with persistently high levels of poverty and on minority communities, which are typically underserved by existing educational and technical assistance programs. Plans encompass education, technical assistance, financial capital, business networking and public policy advocacy.
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