Minority-Led
Bringing BlackTech Week to Kansas City for a day — and debuting the event series during Global Entrepreneurship Week — seemed like a natural fit, said Denayja Reese. The Miami-based festival draws together black entrepreneur leaders who already are championing the startup hustle of their communities, she said. Powered by Code Fever, which was founded…
The multimillion-dollar investment from a Saudi Arabian accelerator and capital firm is pushing WISE Power from the West Bottoms to global growth, said Kevin Williams. “The injection will allow us to expand quickly to get this technology out to the world, which was what our original intent was with WISE Power,” said Williams, founder of…
The mission of Base Academy of Music (BAM) is clear –– help kids in Kansas City’s urban core reach their God-given potential, one note at a time, said Clint Velazquez. “Music is what got me through school,” Velazquez, founder of the academy said. “I became a music teacher later in life. Working in the suburbs,…
Dividends from Teach for America KC swelled Rachel Foster’s development as a teacher and community member invested in Kansas City, the leader in innovation-driven education said. “I owe everything, it feels like, to Teach for America,” said Foster, Young Entrepreneurial Spirit program leader at Lee A. Tolbert Community Academy. “The fruits keep coming in for…
Tinkering with old technology defined childhood for Philip Van Der Straeten, COO of Kansas City tech startup Erkios Systems. Such adventures could one day provide a nationwide payoff for his company, he said. “Our organization was built by tinkerers and critical thinkers attempting to break things down and get a better grasp of what they…