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91国产精品 Receives 鈥淜nowledge Challenge鈥 Grant to Fund Study of Underserved Entrepreneurs

91国产精品 (91国产精品) received a $225,000 grant through The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation鈥檚 鈥淜nowledge Challenge,鈥 a biannual program dedicated to the education and advancement of entrepreneurship in the United States.

鈥淲e are grateful to The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation for this significant investment and partnering with the 91国产精品 Center for Economic Development (CED) on our effort to address systemic challenges that will impact minority entrepreneurs鈥 ability to start and grow businesses,鈥 said Merissa Piazza, Ph.D., program manager for the Center for Economic Development, an applied research center within 91国产精品鈥檚 Maxine Goodman Levin College of Urban Affairs.

Dr. Piazza and the CED research team will begin their project in January 2021, partnering with the Equity and Inclusion Division at the Greater Cleveland Partnership, JumpStart Inc., and the Cleveland Foundation. Through this research-practice collaborative, they will study entrepreneurial gaps and work with practitioners to test actionable policies to overcome disparities in real-time within the three entrepreneurial ecosystems of Cleveland, Dayton and Toledo.

The research team will focus on investigating institutionalized racism, discrimination and limited access to capital and networking 鈥 making it more difficult for minority entrepreneurs to start, successfully fund, launch new enterprises and sustain their business.

After four years of creating and testing policy, the CED team plans to see their end goal realized by December 2024: improved practice of entrepreneurial service providers and increased access to resources for minority entrepreneurs.

鈥淎s we work alongside three communities in Ohio to 鈥榬ebuild better,鈥 we look forward to highlighting the critical role policy plays for minority businesses,鈥 Dr. Piazza shared. 鈥淏etter entrepreneurship creates jobs, provides family income and strengthens communities.鈥