Kauffman funds 46 more project, research grants; many boosting early entrepreneurship 

Pipeline leaders have seen that when they invest deeply in people, the impact extends far beyond a single business, said Melissa Vincent, describing her entrepreneur network’s alignment with efforts at the Kauffman Foundation to expand economic mobility across the region.

Kauffman on Thursday announced its latest tranche of Project and Research grantees, investing in innovative ideas, data-driven insights, and community-centered solutions that dovetail with the institution’s strategic focus on college access and completion, workforce and career development, and entrepreneurship.

Pipeline, a Midwest-focused, founder-first entrepreneur support organization, was among the 46 groups awarded funds for their initiatives.

“We’re incredibly grateful for the Kauffman Foundation’s support,” said Vincent, “which allows us to show up earlier and more intentionally for entrepreneurs who need it most, building financial confidence and equipping them with the tools and support to create businesses that generate jobs, fuel local economies, and leave a lasting impact in their communities.”

At a high level, Pipeline’s work is focused on strengthening financial fluency and capital readiness for founders, particularly those who have historically faced barriers to accessing capital, said Vincent. 

“We’re helping entrepreneurs better understand the financial side of their business, build confidence in how they navigate capital decisions, and ultimately position themselves to grow more sustainably,” she explained.

Project grantees like Pipeline are expected to implement and test community-based solutions that expand access to opportunity, strengthen systems, and create pathways to long-term economic success, translating investment into real-world impact.

“We see this as part of a larger effort to expand economic mobility through entrepreneurship. This funding allows us to take a core strength of Pipeline — helping entrepreneurs build financial understanding and confidence — and extend it more broadly across the community,” Vincent continued. “Whether someone is building a local business or a high-growth company, having clarity and confidence around financials is a foundational building block for long-term success.”

Simone Curls, CEO of the Prospect Business Association; courtesy photo

Intentional capital in the right hands

Economic mobility doesn’t happen by chance, said Dr. DeAngela Burns-Wallace, president and CEO at the Kauffman Foundation, in an announcement for the recent grants.

“It is built through intentional investment in people, systems, and ideas,” she said. “These cohorts of research and project grantees bring critical insight and innovation to the work. By supporting both evidence generation and on-the-ground solutions, we are strengthening the conditions that allow individuals, families, and communities to thrive.”

Funding from Kauffman’s latest round provides a rare opportunity for the Prospect Business Association, explained CEO Simone Curls.

“Multiyear project grants are uncommon, and this investment allows us to provide sustained, equitable access to capital for the entrepreneurs we serve,” she said. “When many people hear ‘capital,’ they think of grants or loans. While we support access to funding — through loan readiness, application preparation, individualized guidance, and strong financial partnerships — we also take a broader view.”

Through workshops across the Kansas City metro, the Prospect Business Association works to build financial literacy, strengthen business development, and support long-term growth, Curls explained.

“‘Capital’ also means access to opportunity,” she said. “By connecting small and emerging businesses with some of the region’s largest companies, we help open doors that might otherwise remain closed — creating pathways to sustainable revenue and long-term success.”

Kauffman’s funding allows the Prospect Business association to deepen its work, expand its reach, and ensure more business owners — regardless of background — have the resources, relationships, and support they need to thrive, Curls said. 

“At a time when equitable economic development is more important than ever, this kind of sustained commitment makes a lasting difference not only for individual entrepreneurs, but for the entire Kansas City community,” she said.

Natasha Herdman, founder and CEO of Pawsperity, speaks after being named winner of UMKC’s 2024 Marion and John Kreamer Award for Social Entrepreneurship; photo by Taylor Wilmore, Startland News

Cross-sector investments, building skills

The Kauffman grants are intended to support organizations and researchers working to better understand and address the systemic barriers that limit access to opportunity while advancing practical strategies that help individuals learn, work, and build wealth.

Kansas City-based Pawsperity, a just-announced Project grantee, furthers that effort through its nonprofit grooming school — a transformative program meant to help low-income individuals break the cycle of generational poverty through extensive job training within a booming industry.

“Dog grooming is a great fit for the folks we work with because it has low barriers to entry,” said Natasha Herdman, founding CEO of Pawsperity. “Many of our students haven’t completed high school, are in recovery, have a disability, and/or have a history of incarceration, but they can still be successful in the program and get a well-paying job after graduation. Grooming is also a high-growth industry with a lot of job opportunities, and it offers sustainable pay and flexible scheduling, which is key for families.”

Funded projects and their descriptions include:

• Amethyst Place — Support for a workforce and career development project applying a 2Gen framework to provide parallel adult and youth tracks and integrated family services, strengthening workforce skills and pathways to generational economic mobility.
• Association of Women’s Business Centers — Support to pilot a new way to provide entrepreneurs with microloans in KC. AWBC proposed utilizing its fiscally sponsored project, GoodBread Innovations, Inc., to advance this grant’s purpose.
• Black Gravity — Support for an entrepreneurship project to expand Franchise Nova to Kansas City, creating franchise ownership pathways and wealth-building opportunities for entrepreneurs.
• City Year — Support for a college access and completion project to strengthen students’ college and career readiness while building the professional and leadership skills of AmeriCorps Student Support Coaches.
• Core Skills Institute — Support for a workforce and career development project to expand bioscience micro credentialing in Kansas City by increasing student certification, training evaluators, engaging employers, and strengthening workforce readiness.
• EDC Loan Corporation — Support for an entrepreneurship proposal to implement a two-year Savings Match program in Kansas City, providing personalized technical assistance to strengthen business sustainability and scalability.
• Enterprise Center in Johnson County (WBC) — Support for an entrepreneurship project to expand a loan readiness initiative that strengthens the capacity of ESOs and lenders to better serve underrepresented entrepreneurs and expand economic mobility.
• Frontier Schools — Support for a college access and completion project to strengthen postsecondary retention and graduation outcomes for low-income, first-generation students through a college mentoring initiative.
• Impact Charitable — Support to expand benefits access and strengthen workforce participation across KS and MO. IC proposed utilizing its fiscally sponsored project, MyFriendBen, to advance this grant’s purpose.
• Independent Sector — Support for the comprehensive revision of Independent Sector’s Principles for Good Governance and Ethical Practice to strengthen nonprofit governance and leadership and advance collective action.
• Junior Achievement of Greater Kansas City — Support for a college access and completion project to expand an evidence-based model that advances academic achievement, strengthens postsecondary pathways, and enhances career readiness.
• Justine Peterson Housing and Reinvestment Corporation — Support for an entrepreneurship project to match Missouri SSBCI funds and provide small business loans with education and technical assistance to low- to moderate-income entrepreneurs in Kansas City.
• Kansas Leadership Center — Support for a workforce and career development project to scale leadership programs in Kansas City, strengthening community organizations’ capacity and expanding workforce skills to advance economic mobility.
• Kansas Manufacturing Solutions — Support for a workforce and career development project to position manufacturers in the Kansas City region as Employers of Choice, improving retention and expanding the talent pipeline to create equitable career opportunities.
• Kids Win Missouri — Support for a workforce and career development project to expand a cost-sharing model that increases access to affordable, quality child care in the Kansas City region, supporting workforce participation and economic mobility.
• Minerva University — Support for a college access and completion project to build local partnerships, remove financial barriers, and launch the Kansas City Cohort Pathway Program for high-impact education and careers.
• Missouri College and Career Attainment Network — Support for a college access and completion project to advance the KCCAN College Completion Project, boosting persistence and degree attainment for KCPS graduates at regional colleges through high-impact practices.
• Missouri Works Initiative — Support for a workforce and career development project to expand a pre-apprenticeship program in Kansas City, strengthening the advanced manufacturing talent pipeline and connecting underrepresented individuals to high-quality careers.
• National Bankers Association Foundation — Support for an entrepreneurship project to establish the Economic Mobility Bond framework in Kansas City, linking mission-driven lenders and MDIs to capital markets to expand access to capital for underrepresented entrepreneurs.
• Pawsperity — Support for a workforce and career development project to expand the grooming program, increasing annual graduates and strengthening workforce readiness.
• Pipeline — Support for an entrepreneurship project to strengthen financial capability and capital readiness for Kansas City founders through education, mentorship, and technology.
• Plug in South Los Angeles — Support for an entrepreneurship project to launch a Kansas City Pre-Seed Accelerator offering cohort-based programming, mentorship, and investor connections for underrepresented founders to advance equitable economic mobility.
• Prospect Business Association — Support for an entrepreneurship project to enhance capital readiness programs, expanding equitable access to capital and procurement opportunities and advancing inclusive economic growth and wealth creation.
• Rising Tide Capital Inc — Support for an entrepreneurship project to expand equitable opportunities in Kansas City’s East Side, strengthening financial confidence and access to inclusive lending to drive economic mobility.
• Support Kansas City — Support to strengthen nonprofit talent recruitment through a regional initiative. Support KC proposed utilizing its fiscally sponsored project, Purpose Works KC, to advance this grant’s purpose.
• The Aspen Institute — Support for an entrepreneurship project to pilot a City Lab leveraging the 2026 FIFA World Cup to host workshops, convenings, and exchanges that expand inclusive economic opportunity in Kansas City.
• The Century Foundation — Support for a workforce and career development project to scale an initiative in KC, St. Louis, and Wichita, engaging regional colleges to strengthen pathways to advanced manufacturing careers for underrepresented communities.
• The Family Conservancy — Support for a workforce and career development project to connect Kansas Citians to sustainable early childhood careers, providing training, credentials, and pathways for long-term advancement and economic mobility.
• UMKC Foundation — Support for a college access and completion project to expand the UMKC Math Academy, providing dual-credit instruction to close math proficiency gaps, strengthen STEM readiness, and advance equitable access to high-quality instruction.
• UMKC Foundation — Support for a college access and completion project to expand existing programs serving first-generation and underrepresented students, leveraging shared staff and infrastructure to strengthen academic and career outcomes.
• University of Kansas Center for Research — Support for a college access and completion project to expand evidence-based programs that advance postsecondary pathways and attainment for justice-involved youth.
• WestEd — Support for a college access and completion project to launch the Math Teacher Workforce Pathway and a Regional Collaborative partnership, preparing, certifying, and placing new math teachers in high-need Kansas City schools.

In addition to such hands-on projects, Kauffman’s recent announcement also detailed ways Research grantees are expected to generate new knowledge and actionable insights to inform policy, practice, and investment decisions. 

Click here to read the full list of Research grantees.

“Their work contributes to a growing body of evidence focused on closing wealth gaps and improving economic outcomes, ensuring that decisions are guided by data, lived experience, and measurable impact,” Kauffman said in a release.

Together, the portfolio of 46 grants reflects a comprehensive approach – pairing research and learning with action and implementation to accelerate progress toward the Foundation’s 2035 vision: making Kansas City a national model for equitable economic mobility. 

“These grants reflect a shared understanding that meaningful change requires collaboration,” Kauffman said. “Investments in organizations across sectors are helping build a stronger, more connected ecosystem equipped to drive lasting, inclusive economic growth.”