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Community Corner

Summit DD Receives Award

The Summit County Developmental Disabilities Board (Summit DD) Microenterprise program was honored during the eighth annual Team NEO Economic Development Plus Awards, in Cleveland on July 9th. Winning the Fostering Entrepreneurship award, the Microenterprise program was highlighted for its innovative self-employment program.

The Team NEO Plus Awards are dedicated to recognizing organizations that have made creative and significant contributions to the economic development of the 18-county region of Northeast Ohio. The Fostering Entrepreneurship award specifically spotlights efforts that cultivate a new start-up organization(s) to be successful in the Cleveland Plus region.

In line with the award’s focus, Summit DD’s Microenterprise program has offered self-employment opportunities to more than 30 individuals with developmental disabilities. 
“The goal of the Microenterprise program is to create opportunities for individuals to become as self-sufficient as possible by giving them tools, training and supports to start their own small business ventures,” explained Jacquie Owens, Summit DD’s Business Innovations Manager.

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“The individuals we support develop businesses around their interests. We help advise them in areas of marketing, researching regulations, obtaining suppliers, and other business procedures,” added Microenterprise Advisor Gary Peters. Through the program, individuals have established a variety of self-directed businesses, from selling artwork to publishing books.

A specialty greeting card business, Inspires 2 Aspire, and a published illustrator are just two examples of the many successes that have emerged from the program. Additional stories of entrepreneurs from the Microenterprise program can be found on Summit DD’s blog (SummitDDBlog.com) and its Facebook page (Facebook.com/SummitDD).

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The 2014 Team NEO Economic Developmental Plus Award winners are also featured in the July/August issue of Inside Business magazine

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