Virtual Event: Polsky Center Small Business Bootcamp: Navigating Access to Capital Resources

The Polsky Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation is pleased to announce the Polsky Center Small Business Bootcamp to provide small business owners and local entrepreneurs with resources during these changing times. This virtual event series will take place during the week of April 13th via the Zoom platform, and sessions will take place in the mornings and afternoons to accommodate a variety of schedules.

This series is made possible through a partnership with the Rustandy Center for Social Sector Innovation and the Office of Civic Engagement at the University of Chicago, on behalf of a larger coalition of University groups and partners.

About this Session:

In this session, our panelists will discuss the wide array of new capital sources available to entrepreneurs and small business owners during the current health crisis. The panelists will discuss a wide array of options including banks, alternative capital options such as microloans, and community development financial institutions. A Q&A session will follow the presentation.

About the Speakers: 

Nicole Marwell, PhD, Associate Professor, University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration: Nicole Marwell is Associate Professor in the University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration. She is also a faculty affiliate of the Department of Sociology, a faculty fellow at the Center for Spatial Data Science, and a member of the Faculty Advisory Council of the Mansueto Institute for Urban Innovation. Her research examines urban governance, with a focus on the diverse intersections between nonprofit organizations, government bureaucracies, and politics. 

Merly Thomas, Director of Small Business Development Center, industrial Council of Nearwest Chicago: Merly oversees the daily operations of the SBDC, housed within ICNC. She is tasked with providing advising to small business clients in areas of business development, marketing, finance, and strategy to name a few. Prior to being a part of the ICNC team, she was a food entrepreneur which opened doors to live, work, and travel across Asia Pacific and Southeast Asia. She has an MBA in Entrepreneurship from the University of Nottingham as well as a Masters in Public Health from the University of North Texas-Health Science Center. 

Marcus Yancey, Economic Development Lender and Special Projects Officer, Local Initiatives Support Corporation Chicago: Marcus Yancey is an Economic Development Lender and Special Projects Officer for Local Initiatives Support Corporation Chicago (LISC). LISC’s goal is to create socially and economically vibrant and sustainable neighborhoods with living wage jobs, local businesses, good schools, quality housing and needed amenities. Marcus assists with LISC’s Entrepreneurs of Color Fund by providing a mix of capital, free technical assistance and business coaching services.

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Other topics in the Polsky Center Small Business Bootcamp series include:

Mon, April 13 at 10:00 AM: Negotiating in Times of Change

Tue, April 14 at 2:00 PM: How To Manage Personal and Professional Ups and Downs While Managing a Business

Wed, April 15 at 2:00 PM: Crisis Management Communication

Thur, April 16 at 10:00 AM: Decision Making in Tough Environments

Thur, April 16 at 2:00 PM: Behavior and Branding

Fri, April 17 at 2:00 PM: Cash Management

Questions? Contact Katie Spoden at kspoden@uchicago.edu.