Kauffman Foundation dishes $840K to 8 area accelerators
May 30, 2017 | Bobby Burch
The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation is hitting the gas on its support of area accelerator programs.
As part of the 2016 KC Accelerator Challenge, the Kauffman Foundation announced Tuesday that it’s awarded a total of $840,000 in grants to eight local venture accelerator programs.
“Our goal is to increase entrepreneurial success in Kansas City through high-quality support programs because we know from recent research that more startups lead to higher productivity, wage growth and quality of life for the entire community,” Kauffman Foundation CEO Wendy Guillies said in a release. “We believe the startups are empowered when they connect to established resources. The KC Accelerator Challenge directly supports organizations that are demonstrably increasing early-stage entrepreneurs’ success and accelerating business through growth.”
The foundation’s accelerator challenge aims to cultivate the area’s entrepreneurial ecosystem through accelerators that provide mentoring, access to resources and other services helping entrepreneurs scale their companies. Grant recipients are required to meet a funding match of Kauffman Foundation funds.
Victor Hwang, vice president of entrepreneurship at the Kauffman Foundation, said that accelerators are key to a vibrant entrepreneurial community.
“Kansas City has many of the ingredients for a strong ecosystem for entrepreneurs,” Hwang said in a release. “The KC Accelerator Challenge is part of the Kauffman Foundation’s comprehensive approach to address barriers that too many of our entrepreneurs face in Kansas City and the Midwest.”
Area accelerator organizations receiving grants and sponsorships are:
- BetaBlox
- Enterprise Center of Johnson County’s Investment Bootcamp
- Helzberg Entrepreneurial Mentoring Program’s Amp Up
- Sprint Accelerator
- Techstars Kansas City
- Project United Knowledge
- Rightfully Sewn
- ScaleUp! Kansas City
The challenge is part of the Kauffman Foundation’s Zero Barriers movement, which is a national campaign to address barriers that entrepreneurs face. Another program within Zero Barriers is Inclusion Open, a grant program that aims to enable champions of underrepresented entrepreneurs to expand their services to topple barriers.
Featured Business
2017 Startups to Watch
stats here
Related Posts on Startland News
25th anniversary: Roasterie founder Danny O’Neill recalls humble start with just ‘nickels and pickles’
Brewed in a recession, Danny O’Neill wasn’t sure The Roasterie would sell a single cup of coffee, let alone percolate into an iconic Kansas City brand, the founder said as he reflected on the regional coffee titan’s 25th anniversary. “The only idea I had was coffee,” O’Neill said of his decision to jump ship from…
KC Crew’s fall leagues set to be first players in overhauled Hy-Vee Arena
The newly renovated Hy-Vee Arena in Kansas City’s West Bottoms is like a giant sports coworking space, said Luke Wade. Coffee shops, restaurants, chiropractors, physical therapists, and other offerings are joining his adult sports and events company in the revamped former Kemper Arena facility, said Wade, founder of KC Crew. And although the arena officially…
KCMO provides welcoming spot for NY-based high-tech kennel startup, DogSpot
Kansas City stands out among 30 different DogSpot partner cities for cutting through bureaucracy to help startups grow, said Chelsea Brownridge. DogSpot — a service that delivers internet-connected, air-conditioned, standalone dog kennels for pet owners to “park” their dogs while, for example, shopping or running errands — teamed with the City of Kansas City, Missouri,…
Three fathers bring Whizz Bang potty-training game to market through Make48, Handy Camel
The Whizz Bang gamifies potty training and saves the bathroom floors of all parents, said Amy Gray. The device, which hooks on the underside of a toilet seat lid, emits a LED light target at the bottom the bowl. Once hit, the device plays musical praise, said Gray, the head of sales for Handy Camel,…