Burton D. Morgan Foundation grant will allow JumpStart to broaden the reach of the Burton D. Morgan Mentoring Program.

A JumpStart program that provides startups with mentoring from experienced entrepreneurs will broaden its reach through a $1 million grant from the Hudson-based Burton D. Morgan Foundation.

The grant provides continuing support for JumpStart’s Burton D. Morgan Mentoring Program, which connects startups and small businesses with teams of up to four mentors who offer invaluable advice on everything from sales and marketing to raising capital and forming a board of directors.

“Our founder Burt Morgan was a big believer in the power of mentoring to help entrepreneurs navigate startup pitfalls and challenges,” said Burton D. Morgan Foundation President and CEO, Deborah Hoover. “Throughout his memoirs, he references individuals who helped him ‘start businesses from scratch’ and he routinely paid it forward, helping hundreds of aspiring entrepreneurs figure out how to move forward successfully. Burton D. Morgan Mentoring Program honors our founder and strengthens the capacity of our ecosystem by linking the expertise of experienced mentors to startups in the throes of solving tough problems for their ventures.”

Launched in 2012, the program has served more than 200 companies to date with its 180+ mentors having volunteered more than 10,000 hours to help entrepreneurs. The companies served by the program have gone on to raise $74.9M in capital and generate $109.6M in revenue, and they currently employ nearly 200 people across the region.

“Support from Burton D. Morgan Foundation has allowed us to build a large, connected entrepreneurial community with direct impact on entrepreneurs’ success and the economic future of Northeast Ohio,” said Burton D. Morgan Mentoring Program Director, Bill Nemeth. “From high school students to 60+ year-old entrepreneurs, we see the impact the program has on peoples’ lives every day and we hear ‘I could not have done it without my mentors’ on a weekly basis.”

“Ultimately, these mentors are giving the most valuable resource they have – time,” added Nemeth. “When you consider the time donated in relation to the amount of capital and revenue generated, this program has generated an hourly return of $18,450 for each mentor hour. That is an impressive return on investment.”

With funding from this latest Burton D. Morgan Foundation grant, the mentoring program will not only provide ongoing assistance to entrepreneurs, but also work to engage entrepreneurs in the community in new ways, including:

• Engaging with more student entrepreneurs by holding office hours at local universities.
• Creating easier access and greater visibility for the program across Northeast Ohio by introducing new office hours at partner locations and by increasing the number of “ask a mentor” panel events throughout the community to reach more entrepreneurs.

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About JumpStart
JumpStart Inc. is a nationally recognized investing, entrepreneurial support and economic development organization dedicated to unlocking the full potential of diverse and ambitious entrepreneurs to economically transform entire communities.

About Burton D. Morgan Foundation
Founded in 1967 by visionary entrepreneur and philanthropist Burt Morgan, the mission of Burton D. Morgan Foundation is to champion the entrepreneurial spirit, contribute to a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem, and serve as a leader in the field of entrepreneurship education.  Morgan Foundation pursues its mission through grantmaking in support of Youth, Collegiate, and Adult Entrepreneurship; through regional ecosystem building to provide strong networks for startups and scaleups; and through knowledge sharing bolstered by its research arm, the Entrepreneurship Education Experiment.