Opportunity and equity. Those are the strategic goals shared for The Community Foundation of Greater New Haven’s new grant program.
“We need to see economic growth, and we need to see economic growth that creates opportunity for everyone in this community,” said Will Ginsberg, president and CEO of The Community Foundation of Greater New Haven.
The foundation was awarded $7.2 million for the New Haven Equitable Entrepreneurial Ecosystem, called NHE3. Of that, the City of New Haven contributed $1.5 million.
The organization will give out to about 175 new businesses each year over the next five years. The average grant will be about $6,000.
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“I’ve learned a lot throughout this process of what community foundations do and how much they support the city, and how much entrepreneurs like myself are not aware of the resources,” said Dr. Jennifer Pierre, one of the program’s first awardees.
Pierre offers wholistic reproductive health approaches for women with challenges like fibroids and endometriosis. The grant award has helped her be able to meet with patients virtually in New Haven and beyond.
She says the NHE3 grant program benefits go beyond the immediate bottom line to provide help in training, mentorship and marketing.
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“Technology is what’s leading everything right now, so to be able to promote technology, to promote services and to also provide access to people who maybe can’t get to doctor’s locations,” Pierre said.
Leaders say there are additional support structures for things like funding educational webinars for recipients to help ensure business success.
It’s just one of the programs getting off the ground around the state. The Department of Economic and Community Development is using local organizations statewide to fund entrepreneur and small business grant programs. The office will send out $46 million to underserved business creators.
“The community foundation for greater New Haven is one of our most valued partners and it continues to do great work in the community,” said Paul Robertson, deputy commissioner of the Department of Economic and Community Development.
The NHE3 program can be helpful for new startups whose owners don’t know where to look for financial help and other supports.
“Getting started is the most important thing, and finding the resources within your community, within your reach,” said Alicia Crutchfield, owner of BLOOM and an NHE3 grant awardee, who has a space in Westville.
“So, we house a flower shop, a gift shop, a wellness room, a café, as well as well as indoor and outdoor event spaces,” Crutchfield said.
Her space allows other entrepreneurs the chance to get on their feet. She says going through the process of grant writing and finding programs like this are hard, but worth it.
“This is relieving financial burdens that many - if not all - of us have when it comes to running a business," Crutchfield said.
You can find out more about the program by clicking here.
