Burton D. Morgan Foundation will focus more on entrepreneurial efforts, growing businesses
Area entrepreneurs and business owners wishing to grow will become the focus for the Burton D. Morgan Foundation, its programming and its grants for the next several years.
While charting a course for the next several years, the Morgan Foundation staff and trustees developed a refined mission statement and defined its guiding principles, core values, and strategic priorities.
The foundation will continue to support the education and growth of entrepreneurs in the coming years. The foundation will continue its support of entrepreneurial skillbuilding through YIPPEE Exchange, a market-based approach to philanthropy which connects K-12 educators to a host of free entrepreneurship education resources and to one another. The foundation will also continue to support startups through educational programs for adults who wish to begin a small business or need help to grow their venture.
Morgan Foundation will also be more deliberate in its approach to supporting entrepreneurs, one of the Foundation’s highest priorities. Foundation dollars will be deployed to support programming that puts capital in the hands of entrepreneurs, which is one of the most critical and unmet needs of Northeast Ohio’s entrepreneurial community.
While the Foundation will continue to support programming for entrepreneurs of all stages, greater emphasis will be placed on supporting second stage businesses, entrepreneurial companies with revenues between $1 million and $50 million and a desire to grow. Second stage businesses are critical to job creation and a healthy regional economy. Morgan Foundation believes there is a scarcity in programming for this important subset of entrepreneurs and it intends to fill that gap.
Additionally, foundation officials stated they will become more intentional about prioritizing free enterprise programming and educating stakeholders and the community about its benefits. The free enterprise system is the engine that drives American ingenuity and a key to unlocking human potential, driving economic and societal progress, and solving the world’s greatest challenges.
“Our recently appointed President and CEO, Dan Hampu, prioritized the strategic planning process during his first year," said Board Chairman Richard Seaman. "He actively engaged Morgan staff and trustees to create a more focused strategic direction for our grant dollars that better reflects Burt Morgan’s belief in the free enterprise system and that will enhance the growth of second stage businesses in Northeast Ohio. The Board wants our grant dollars to make a real difference consistent with Burt’s vision.”
To spur the growth of second stage businesses, the foundation is partnering with Edward Lowe Foundation to provide a suite of programs aimed at second stage businesses, following a successful pilot in 2023. These programs will complement the Scalerator NEO program, co-funded by the Burton D. Morgan Foundation and the Fasenmyer Fund.
“We are excited about the new direction of the Foundation, which includes further alignment with Burt’s intent," Hampu said. "We’ve been a part of building fields in the past and are excited to continue this work by strengthening the free enterprise system and entrepreneur education and support. Initial conversations and pilots in these areas have been catalysts to these new priorities.”
To view a summary of Burton D. Morgan Foundation’s 2024-26 Strategic Plan, visit: https://www.bdmorganfdn.org/strategic-plan.
The Burton D. Morgan Foundation, which is based in Hudson, is a private foundation based in Northeast Ohio dedicated to advancing the principles of free enterprise and entrepreneurship. Established in 1967 by the visionary entrepreneur and philanthropist Burt Morgan, the Foundation’s mission is to strengthen free enterprise by investing in people and entities that embody the entrepreneurial spirit.
Visit www.bdmorganfdn.org for details.
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Entrepreneurs, growing businesses, are Morgan Foundation targets
