The U.S. Small Business Administration today awarded $300,000 in grants to three organizations offering entrepreneurship training to women service members, veterans and military spouses.
The funding opportunity, offered by SBA’s Office of Veterans Business Development, supports each organization’s entrepreneurial programs for women who serve in our military and veteran communities. Each awardee was chosen based on their demonstrated history of and commitment to providing training programs and resources to women.
“Women veterans represent a fast-growing segment of the veteran population. As this number grows, so has the number of women veterans who continue to serve their country by becoming small business owners,” said Larry Stubblefield, Associate Administrator for SBA’s Office of Veterans Business Development. “As women veterans, service members, and spouses continue to contribute greatly to our economy, we are eager to fund organizations that will support them through their entrepreneurial journey and set them up for success.”
The three awardees are:
- Lift Fund: San Antonio Lift Fund – $75,000
Lift Fund is a non-profit organization that helps small business owners with limited access to capital. The Texas-based Women Veteran Entrepreneurship Program offers in-person and online training opportunities, as well as one-on-one advising for women veterans, transitioning service members, active duty military, and spouses who are aspiring or currently operating small businesses in Texas.
ONABEN is a non-profit organization that delivers economic and entrepreneurial development services to the Native American business community. The organization provides entrepreneurial training services to support the growth of women veterans, service members, as well as women spouses of military personnel in Oklahoma, Texas, and Arkansas through coaching, webcasts, and training. The program will provide women veterans with the resources to grow in business, explore the importance of social entrepreneurship to build stronger communities and economies, and overcome the challenges of small business through culturally appropriate capacity building, peer coaching, and entrepreneurial activities.
- Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University: Veteran Women Igniting the Spirit of Entrepreneurship (V-WISE) – $150,000
The V-WISE program is an intensive three-phase program containing a 15-day online preparatory course, a three-day residency program, and post-training technical support. The program empowers women veterans and military spouses to find passion and learn the business savvy skills necessary to turn an idea or start-up into a growing venture.
To learn more about the SBA’s small business start-up and expansion resources for veterans, visit www.sba.gov/veterans.