How is the Fund for Our Economic Future helping minority businesses?
The Fund for Our Economic Future is composed of 83 foundations. Those organizations have pooled their time and resources to contribute to the region’s economic growth and development. The Fund supports Advance Northeast Ohio, a regional action plan, through grant-making, research and civic engagement. Not long ago, it organized a broad stakeholders’ dialogue to engage Northeast Ohioans from all walks of life. Four major economic initiatives emerged. One of them — growth through racial and economic inclusion — became part of the the regional action plan. To that end, Kent State, the Akron Urban League and SCORE — ‘counselors to America’s small business’ — openly discussed what each was doing to support small business development and success. In the process, we discovered that we were not effectively reaching a growing group of business entrepreneurs in the African-American and Hispanic communities. The three partners are only serving 633 of the 3,000 eligible businesses. So, we organize
