One and All is a ten-week program designed to support more equitable access to successful entrepreneurship and small-business ownership through a combination of webinar-based learning, networking, mentorship, business coaching, engagement with subject matter experts and access to an extended resource network.
Over the course of the program, participants receive support from the LEAP team and program partners, the Fledge and the Refugee Development Center, via open office hours and periodic group check-in engagements. Each participant is paired with a professional mentor, receives one-on-one business coaching from a dedicated consultant with the Michigan Small Business Development Center at Lansing Community College and will graduate with a new or refined business plan.
Who is One and All for?
One and All aims to enhance equity in entrepreneurship by focusing on populations historically underrepresented among small-business owners such as Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC), women, people with disabilities, immigrants and refugees, military veterans and formerly incarcerated people whose household income falls at or below the Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed (ALICE) Threshold.
“Underrepresented” means the percentage of people from these groups who own small businesses is far less than their respective share of the population would predict. This is most often due to systemic under-resourcing and discrimination. ALICE households earn more than the Federal Poverty Level but less than the basic cost of living for their state, representing some of the most economically vulnerable people in our community.
A new addition to One and All program criteria will be the consideration of debt. If debt effects your economic-mobility but does not appear when factoring whether your household is ALICE or not, we will now take this into consideration for participation.
In 2024, there will be two cohorts available for participation. Cohort 8 is scheduled to run from February to March 2024, and Cohort 9 will take place from August to September 2024. This program is exclusively open to entrepreneurs and small-business owners located in Clinton, Eaton, Ingham, or Shiawassee County, Michigan. Applicants are welcome at any stage of their business, whether they are in the idea phase or already own a physical location, but they must have a marketable idea they plan to pursue.
Program Benefits
- No cost to participate.
- A unique combination of business and communication training, coaching and mentoring including a 2-month curriculum of practical and intensive sessions about business challenges, which also connects participants with a professional network and business resources.
- A team of dedicated mentors to guide each entrepreneur to take a business idea or growth strategy to the next level.
- $2,500 seed money following successful program completion.
- Lifelong membership in the One and All community!
Eligibility
- The applicant must fall below the ALICE threshold:
- Single-adult households: annual income $23,400 or less.
- Senior households (65+): annual income $26,244 or less.
- Family of 4 or more: annual income $64,116 or less.
- The applicant, if not traditionally ALICE, must prove a significant need for assistance in establishment of a business through financial hardship associated with student or personal debt factors.
- Applicants must be in the idea stage of starting a business or looking to pivot and grow an existing business to adapt to the current business environment.
- Business must be founded or registered in Ingham County, Eaton County, or Clinton County, Michigan.
- Business must not be a franchise nor affiliated with a national chain.
- Nonprofits and sole proprietors are eligible to apply.
One and All Program Eight Application
One and All is a ten-week program designed to support more equitable access to successful entrepreneurship and small-business ownership through a combination of webinar-based learning, networking, mentorship, business coaching, engagement with subject matter experts and access to an extended resource network.
Over the course of the program, participants receive support from the LEAP team and program partners, the Fledge and the Refugee Development Center, via open office hours and periodic group check-in engagements. Each participant is paired with a professional mentor, receives one-on-one business coaching from a dedicated consultant with the Michigan Small Business Development Center at Lansing Community College and will graduate with a new or refined business plan.
Who is One and All for?
One and All aims to enhance equity in entrepreneurship by focusing on populations historically underrepresented among small-business owners such as Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC), women, people with disabilities, immigrants and refugees, military veterans and formerly incarcerated people whose household income falls at or below the Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed (ALICE) Threshold.
“Underrepresented” means the percentage of people from these groups who own small businesses is far less than their respective share of the population would predict. This is most often due to systemic under-resourcing and discrimination. ALICE households earn more than the Federal Poverty Level but less than the basic cost of living for their state, representing some of the most economically vulnerable people in our community.
A new addition to One and All program criteria will be the consideration of debt. If debt effects your economic-mobility but does not appear when factoring whether your household is ALICE or not, we will now take this into consideration for participation.
In 2024, there will be two cohorts available for participation. Cohort 8 is scheduled to run from February to March 2024, and Cohort 9 will take place from August to September 2024. This program is exclusively open to entrepreneurs and small-business owners located in Clinton, Eaton, Ingham, or Shiawassee County, Michigan. Applicants are welcome at any stage of their business, whether they are in the idea phase or already own a physical location, but they must have a marketable idea they plan to pursue.
Program Benefits
- No cost to participate.
- A unique combination of business and communication training, coaching and mentoring including a 2-month curriculum of practical and intensive sessions about business challenges, which also connects participants with a professional network and business resources.
- A team of dedicated mentors to guide each entrepreneur to take a business idea or growth strategy to the next level.
- $2,500 seed money following successful program completion.
- Lifelong membership in the One and All community!
Eligibility
- The applicant must fall below the ALICE threshold:
- Single-adult households: annual income $23,400 or less.
- Senior households (65+): annual income $26,244 or less.
- Family of 4 or more: annual income $64,116 or less.
- The applicant, if not traditionally ALICE, must prove a significant need for assistance in establishment of a business through financial hardship associated with student or personal debt factors.
- Applicants must be in the idea stage of starting a business or looking to pivot and grow an existing business to adapt to the current business environment.
- Business must be founded or registered in Ingham County, Eaton County, or Clinton County, Michigan.
- Business must not be a franchise nor affiliated with a national chain.
- Nonprofits and sole proprietors are eligible to apply.