Our focus is and must be economic development. Business is the end game. We believe that business and economic strength is tied to our healthy morale and social, political, and community growth and power. We believe that our students must be taught the benefits of multiple streams of income and business ownership as the minimum wage is not enough to sustain families and build wealth. We want to be able to provide livable wages to those who want to work through this process.
We want to see multiple businesses in our neighborhoods and communities, providing services and goods and employment opportunities. Students will learn how to design, launch, and run a business. They will study different business models and write business plans to actively pursue their business interests and community’s needs. Students will also develop ideas and plans for non-profit organizations to address the social justice needs of their communities. The goal is for students to develop actual businesses from what they learn in this class.
Students who do develop businesses as a result of the knowledge they gain from this courses will be given continuing education to sustain their businesses for the long haul through in-person or virtual classes. They will be offered classes that target areas such as financing, grant writing, customer service, organization, etc.