Addressing Concentrated Poverty
The Neighborhood Development Center (NDC) of Saint Paul, MN has launched The Build from Within Alliance across multiple cities and organizations to adopt, adapt and implement the NDC’s approach of place-based entrepreneur-focused economic development. The project is supported by a three-year $900,000 grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation. The total project is budgeted at $3 million and the grant from the Kellogg Foundation gives NDC the ability to formalize the Build from Within Alliance. All of the cities have begun providing the NDC entrepreneur training, financing and technical assistance program locally.
The Build from Within Alliance is a three-year pilot program that will focus on placing high concentrations of investments within very-low to low-income primarily minority neighborhoods.
NDC’s Founder and CEO, Mihailo Temali says, “for over 24 years, NDC has developed an approach of economic development that builds on the assets and determination of residents to increase their own wealth and rebuild their neighborhoods from within. Each city in the Alliance has its own unique challenges, but that allows us to learn from each other and adjust the NDC approach as each city sees fit.”
Efforts will focus on increasing the capacity of Alliance cities to create a complete eco-system of entrepreneurship within inner-city low-income and predominately minority and immigrant neighborhoods to include business training, business services, risk-tolerant lending, and real estate activities. In addition, the Alliance will benefit from peer-learning, coaching and program tool development, and an evaluation process.
Current cities and organizations in the Alliance are Syracuse, NY, through CenterState Corporation for Economic Development; Philadelphia, PA, through Welcoming Center for New Pennsylvanians and FINANTA; Wilmington, DE, through West End Neighborhood House; and Detroit, MI, through Prosper US and Southwest Solutions. West End Neighborhood House just celebrated their first training classes, Launcher, with a “Shark Tank” event and 24 entrepreneurs. Gov. John Carney and Mayor Mike Purzyck attended the event.
About Neighborhood Development Center:
NDC is a non-profit, community development financial institution that believes residents of low-income, inner city neighborhoods have entrepreneurial talent and energy that represent powerful assets available to help revitalize communities. NDC provides entrepreneur training, small business lending (and Sharia-acceptable financing), business services and real estate incubators that help our clients start and grow vital small businesses. For more information, visit www.ndc-mn.org.
About the W.K. Kellogg Foundation:
The W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF), founded in 1930 as an independent, private foundation by breakfast cereal pioneer, Will Keith Kellogg, is among the largest philanthropic foundations in the United States. Guided by the belief that all children should have an equal opportunity to thrive, WKKF works with communities to create conditions for vulnerable children so they can realize their full potential in school, work and life.
The Kellogg Foundation is based in Battle Creek, Michigan, and works throughout the United States and internationally, as well as with sovereign tribes. Special emphasis is paid to priority places where there are high concentrations of poverty and where children face significant barriers to success. WKKF priority places in the U.S. are in Michigan, Mississippi, New Mexico and New Orleans; and internationally, are in Mexico and Haiti. For more information, visit www.wkkf.org.
SOURCE Neighborhood Development Center
