News

Three trillion dollars. That’s a sum that demands attention. That’s how much money will be coming to cities and towns across America through the combined Infrastructure, Climate and ARPA bills.  Not to mention the $1 trillion plus in corporation and institutional supplier contracting.  Interise calls this the PROCUREMENT ECONOMY – because it is – it is a huge economic opportunity for our country. 

Interise, a nonprofit supporting the growth of minority- and women-owned small businesses, is proud to announce SolveIt 2024: Creating an Inclusive Economy, taking place from May 5-7, 2024, at the DuSable Museum in Chicago, IL. Academy Award nominated, Emmy nominated, and Golden Globe-winning actor, filmmaker, and activist Taraji P. Henson will join to discuss her experiences breaking down barriers both as an actor and as the founder of her own production company, TPH Entertainment.

Interise has been awarded a $2 million grant from The Yield Giving Foundation. Established by Mackenzie Scott, the foundation, working with Lever for Change, opened applications for a $1 million grant—before doubling the award based on Interise’s potential impact.

Interise is pleased to announce the addition of two new members to its board of directors: Mark Ardayfio, Senior Director of Portfolio and Change Management at Barclays, and Rebecca Karp, Founder and CEO of Karp Strategies.

Elizabeth J. Reynoso, a passionate and dedicated leader with decades of experience in creating systemic solutions to address racial wealth disparities, joined Interise, a national economic development nonprofit, this month as the new Director of Research, Evaluation & Impact.

Minority- and women-owned small businesses are under attack in the courts. The Supreme Court’s decisions on Affirmative Action will affect hiring and retention policies for small businesses and has opened the door to further legal threats to inclusive growth.

The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision to strike down affirmative action in colleges is a blow to efforts to address systemic inequities and the ambitions of young Americans hoping to better their lives through education.

May 2023: Now that the most devastating effects of the pandemic are in our rearview mirror, our data analysis team has run some numbers on the effect the last three years has had on our alumni small businesses.

Small business growth can be a powerful tool to create good jobs and build wealth for business owners, employees, and communities. Contracting to provide goods and/or services can be an organic way for many businesses

Throughout the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, business owners in Interise’s network faced unprecedented challenges around staffing yet seemed to demonstrate resilience.

This post is part of an Interise Insights series, sharing findings from our most recent 2021 Annual Assessment survey with 1,164 responses from established small businesses across race, ethnicity, and place.

National not-for-profit Interise has been awarded one-million dollars to bring insights on systemic barriers to quality job creation at small businesses from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.