Right to Start Announces the Launch of the Arkansas Starters Coalition
The Arkansas Starters Coalition is a statewide initiative to advance entrepreneurship as a civic priority.
Pictured: Springdale Mayor Doug Sprouse (center) displays the “Right to Start Day” Proclamation for Springdale, AR, at the Arkansas Starters Coalition launch. From left to right: Right to Start’s Heartland Coalition Manager Jeannette Balleza Collins, Advocate Michelle Pedro, Advocate Irma Chavez, Mayor Sprouse, Advocate Pauline Rescorl, Advocate Shay Holloway, Advocate Daymara Baker, and Right to Start’s Chief Operating Officer Kim Lane.
Springdale, AR – August 13, 2024 – Right to Start, the national nonprofit organization championing entrepreneurship as a civic priority, announced today the launch of the Arkansas Starters Coalition, a statewide initiative to advance entrepreneurship as a civic priority. Entrepreneurship is key to economic growth and quality of life, as young businesses create virtually all net job growth in America, and research across the 50 states shows that for every 1 percent increase in the entrepreneurship rate, the poverty rate decreases by 2 percent.
The Arkansas Starters Coalition will be advancing entrepreneurship across the state: convening entrepreneurs, identifying barriers to starting new businesses, proposing policies to remove those barriers, and engaging all communities including those that have been historically excluded. The Coalition consists of the following founding member organizations:
Arkansas Coalition of the Marshallese (statewide)
Conexión de Negocios Latinos (statewide)
Cureate (statewide)
EforAll / EparaTodos (focused on Northwest Arkansas)
FORGE (statewide)
Multicultural Business Xcellerator (MBX) (statewide)
NEXXT Women (focused on Northwest Arkansas)
NWA Girl Gang (focused on Northwest Arkansas)
Over a Cup (focused on Northeast Arkansas)
Right to Start (statewide)
Southern Capital Project (focused on Central and Southern Arkansas)
Velocity Group (statewide)
The Coalition’s launch took place today at a morning event held at ARt deCentrale in downtown Springdale. Participants included representatives of the founding member organizations as well as individual entrepreneurs. Speakers included the following:
The Hon. Doug Sprouse, Mayor of Springdale, provided a welcome.
Kim Lane, Chief Operating Officer of Right to Start and a resident of Conway, AR, offered introductory remarks, highlighting the significance of the Arkansas Starters Coalition.
April Roy, CEO of femPAQ, a women-owned business advancing women’s health based in Fayetteville, and a resident of Fayetteville, joined Jeannette Balleza Collins, Right to Start’s Heartland Coalition Manager, and a resident of Fayetteville, in a fireside chat.
“As a lifelong Arkansan, an entrepreneur, and a champion of entrepreneurship, I know the amazing potential for new business growth in our state,” said Kim Lane, Right to Start’s Chief Operating Officer. “But, for entrepreneurs to thrive broadly, there must be a robust environment that supports and encourages them – one that prioritizes making the process of starting a business easier by changing the civic landscape. The Arkansas Starters Coalition is a crucial catalyst for enhancing our entrepreneurial environment, so that new businesses can grow dramatically in every community in the state.”
“The founding members of the Arkansas Starters Coalition are key to the growth of entrepreneurship across Arkansas,” said Jeannette Balleza Collins, Right to Start’s Heartland Coalition Manager. “They have extraordinary knowledge, talent, and experience in helping foster entrepreneurship. They will be vital to the future growth and impact of the Coalition and to ensuring that entrepreneurship is prioritized and facilitated in every community in the state.”
For more information, contact Henry Miller at hmiller@highimpactpartnering.com.
Right to Start is a national nonpartisan movement to advance entrepreneurship as a civic priority throughout the United States. Entrepreneurship has long been viewed as a solitary endeavor – the lone starter in a basement or garage. Right to Start’s vision is to transform America so that all communities prioritize entrepreneurship, clearing away obstacles to ensure that every American has an equal right to start and a level playing field on which to embark. The campaign is conducted through two affiliated nonprofit organizations, a 501(c)3 and 501(c)4.