Ori Solomon is a front desk receptionist in Talent & Culture for the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. He provides front office support to clients and associates and assists with day-to-day administrative responsibilities. Prior to joining the Kauffman Foundation, Solomon was an event coordinator and store manager with Betty Rae’s Ice Cream, where he coordinated and […]

Dawn Kernen is a data knowledge and operations specialist in Technology for the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. She is responsible for working with program areas and external vendors to define and manage business data, data systems and relationships, while providing operational support to make Kauffman a data-enabled organization. Prior to joining the Kauffman Foundation, Kernen […]

Meredith Walrafen is a program officer – heartland strategy in Entrepreneurship for the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. She manages a broad grant portfolio to foster inclusive prosperity through entrepreneurship in the heartland, building and maintaining community outreach efforts and relationships relevant to our work. Prior to joining the Kauffman Foundation, Walrafen was the program manager […]

Dan Earnest is an executive administrative assistant in Racial Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion for the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation, where he works to support internal understanding of racial equity principles policies, and practices. He provides executive-level support for Traci O’Neal Ellis, Senior Director for Racial Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion. Prior to joining the Foundation, Earnest was the production […]

Guillies’ leadership set a path aimed at generational impact on entrepreneurs, educators, and students.

The Central Standards RFP provides matching funds to encourage and accelerate collaborations between two or more entrepreneurship support organizations working together to support Heartland entrepreneurs in the states of Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, and Kansas.

This spring, the Kauffman Foundation released updates to our entrepreneurship indicators, highlighting the latest entrepreneurial trends in both the New Employer Business series and the Kauffman Indicators of Early-Stage Entrepreneurship. The data has sparked conversations about the status of the economy and entrepreneurial activity this past year, particularly around what these trends mean for our cities and communities today. Watch the full forum below.

Economist Rob Fairlie says the most recent update of the Kauffman Indicators of Entrepreneurship’s Early-Stage Entrepreneurship data illustrates a highly resilient entrepreneurial community in the face of COVID-19 as well as extended growth in self-starters among emerging majorities, specifically among Latino founders.

This report highlights three key insights that may help inform more equitable design of future relief and recovery policy and programs for small and new businesses, particularly those owned by BIPOC and women entrepreneurs, as well as entrepreneurs in historically under-resourced communities.

Gig work has received increasing attention in recent years, particularly with the rise of digital platforms. What does the proliferation of digital platforms — and gig work more broadly — mean for entrepreneurship? This forum discusses the landscape of gig work in the U.S., various types of gig work, the relationship between gig work and entrepreneurship, and the implications of gig work for policy and practice. Watch the full forum below.