Grant will Fund New Project to Address Unemployment and Underemployment Among Minorities

The KeyBank Business Boost & Build program, powered by JumpStart, has awarded $120,000 to fund a collaboration between two prominent Akron organizations—the Akron Urban League and ConxusNEO.

Together, these two organizations will launch the Summit Workforce Development Project to address unemployment and underemployment among minorities in the region. The Akron Urban League will contribute to the project through training and readiness education for jobseekers. ConxusNEO will identify high-demand, high-wage jobs in the region, connect the Akron Urban League to the larger talent ecosystem and leverage relationships with companies to enable individuals to participate in job shadowing, job fairs and other engagements.

“This award from JumpStart and the KeyBank Business Boost & Build program will provide us with crucial resources to support software coding and other skill-specific training to improve the lives of unemployed and underemployed jobseekers in Summit County,” said Akron Urban League President & CEO Dr. Sadie Winlock. “Together, with ConxusNEO and existing partnerships, we will make a meaningful and measurable impact in the community.”

“At KeyBank, we have made it our mission to create thriving communities and we believe strong workforce development programs like the Summit Workforce Development Project are core to that mission,” said KeyBank Eastern Ohio Market President Tim Burke.

Funded by a grant from the KeyBank Foundation to JumpStart Inc. in 2017, the KeyBank Business Boost & Build program is designed to stimulate economic growth in Ohio and Upstate New York by helping startups and small businesses grow and preparing the workforce for the needs of those companies.

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About KeyCorp
KeyCorp’s roots trace back 190 years to Albany, New York. Headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Key is one of the nation’s largest bank-based financial services companies, with assets of approximately $137.0 billion at March 31, 2018.

Key provides deposit, lending, cash management, insurance, and investment services to individuals and businesses in 15 states under the name KeyBank National Association through a network of approximately 1,200 branches and more than 1,500 ATMs. Key also provides a broad range of sophisticated corporate and investment banking products, such as merger and acquisition advice, public and private debt and equity, syndications and derivatives to middle market companies in selected industries throughout the United States under the KeyBanc Capital Markets trade name. For more information, visit https://www.key.com/. KeyBank is Member FDIC.

About JumpStart Inc.
JumpStart unlocks the full potential of diverse and ambitious entrepreneurs to economically transform entire communities. For more information, follow @JumpStartInc on Twitter.

About the Akron Urban League
The mission of the Akron Urban League is to improve the quality of life of the citizens of Summit County, particularly African Americans, by advocating and facilitating programs that are economically and educationally transformational, impacting their lives and the lives of future generations. For more information, visit http://www.akronurbanleague.org

About Conxus NEO
Conxus NEO works to position companies to be more competitive while increasing access to opportunity for Summit County’s residents. The organization partners with businesses to identify the skills they need to fill positions and build a talent pipeline by bringing together business partners, educators, workforce programs, economic development organizations and government agencies. For more information, visit http://www.conxusneo.jobs/