At that time, the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation was managing and running many of its own programs – Project Choice, Project Essential, Project Early – and the idea was to help our community become self-sufficient and to offer the opportunity for both young people and adults to make a job rather than just take a job, which is priority of the Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership. We were deeply invested in the community, but the reality was Project Choice, and I think most people would agree with this, was significant [in] how it informed us about the realities of addressing the issues, the opportunities, and the problems of our at-risk community.

At that time, the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation was managing and running many of its own programs – Project Choice, Project Essential, Project Early – and the idea was to help our community become self-sufficient and to offer the opportunity for both young people and adults to make a job rather than just take a job, which is priority of the Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership. We were deeply invested in the community, but the reality was Project Choice, and I think most people would agree with this, was significant [in] how it informed us about the realities of addressing the issues, the opportunities, and the problems of our at-risk community.

— Lou Smith, former Foundation president and CEO, 1995-2002