Making Major Social Impact in Cincinnati
Big things are on the horizon at Flywheel! We’re only 2 weeks away from the close of applications for our fourth Elevator Social Impact Accelerator cohort! Elevator accelerates the growth and impact of social enterprises through engaged mentorship, programming with subject matter experts, residence at the heart of the #startupcincy ecosystem, and opportunities for access to startup capital. The Elevator program culminates in Demo Day, where cohort members pitch to an audience of community stakeholders, social impact supporters, and potential investors. Through an exciting new partnership, these potential investors will include the student-led Social Impact Fund at Miami University.
As we move toward our fourth iteration of the Elevator Social Impact Accelerator, we are motivated by the success we’ve seen from the past three cohorts. Since 2015, Elevator has produced many sustainable, high-impact companies that are making a real difference in the Cincinnati region. Here are a few of their stories!
Workforce Connection: Committed to Building A Stronger Workplace
Workforce Connection serves low-to moderate income frontline workers who experience personal challenges to employment. As a social enterprise, Workforce Connection leverages the expertise of Cincinnati Works to provide on-site job coaching, supervisor training, and access to other services. Since their launch, Workforce Connections has ensured the retention of over 288 jobs in the Greater Cincinnati area — benefitting not only the employers’ bottom lines, but also the economic stability of employees and their families. The 352 total employees who have received support from Workforce Connection reflect multiple underserved demographics — the majority are women, people of color, and dependent on public transportation due to their socioeconomic status. As a member of the 2017 Elevator cohort, Workforce Connection received guidance on branding, scaling, and financial modeling to help them maximize their impact.
Social OTR: Social Minded Cuisine
Elevator alumnus Social OTR provides a one-of-a kind communal dining experience with a social impact mission. Social OTR serves as an internship site for 80 students annually in the Findlay Culinary Training program, where they work alongside professional staff to prepare them for a career in the high-end culinary industry. Social OTR students are members of our community, typically from disadvantaged backgrounds, who are currently unemployed or underemployed. During and after the program, students receive robust soft-skill training, as in life skills, conflict resolution, problem solving and financial planning, with hard-skill culinary training. As a member of the 2016 Elevator cohort, Social OTR clarified their mission, identified critical goals, and built connections to accelerate their growth. Social OTR found community through Elevator, and now are cultivating community in Cincinnati.
Villedge: Launching Teens From Hard Places Beyond the Edge of Their Potential
Villedge fills a gap in youth and family services through their innovative wraparound model of mentorship, community engagement, job training, and client data tracking. Since their time in the 2016 Elevator cohort, Villedge has grown to support more than 50 disadvantaged young adults experiencing behavioral and educational challenges. Over the past two years, Villedge has seen a 50% decrease in crisis behaviors for clients after 6 months of engagement. Psychiatric hospitalizations decrease by 75% after 6 months of teens engaging with Villedge. 90% of engaged Villedge teens have avoided the Juvenile justice system once involved, and school attendance has increased by 50%. As an Elevator participant, Villedge founder Katie Nzekwu received business insights, mentorship, community connections, and pitch training to accelerate her social enterprise.