Program
The African American Entrepreneurship Development Program aims to address the problem of unequal representation between African Americans and White Americans in business ownership. Specifically, the program will target African Americans between 25 and 60 years old who have innovative business ideas and aspire to contribute to their community through entrepreneurship. The key stakeholders in this program include the government, community-based organizations, seasoned CEOs, financial institutions, and learning institutions. The intended benefits of the program include the creation of job opportunities for members of the community, increased financial independence and flexibility, improved quality of life, increased wealth, and enhanced economic opportunities.
Project Description
The African American Entrepreneurship Development Program’s primary objective is to provide resources and support to African American entrepreneurs to start and grow successful businesses. The program aims to provide education, mentorship, access to capital, and other resources to help entrepreneurs thrive. The program’s secondary goal is to increase the number of African American entrepreneurs in the United States, contributing to economic growth and job creation in their communities.
The African American Entrepreneurship Development Program will seek funding from various sources, including the government, community-based organizations, NGOs, seasoned CEOs, financial institutions, and learning institutions. The program’s success relies heavily on securing sufficient funding to provide necessary resources, education, mentorship, and access to capital.
The African American community faces significant challenges in starting and growing successful businesses. These challenges are mainly caused and exacerbated by structural racism, educational disparities, low levels of wealth among African Americans, discrimination in borrowing, and inadequate labor market experience. According to Sanghi et al. (2022), African Americans are less likely to own their businesses than Whites, with only 6% of African American men and 2.7% of African American women being self-employed. This issue is most significant among African American men and women between the ages of 25 and 60.
Evaluation Background
The project’s purpose is to provide an opportunity for African Americans to pursue entrepreneurship, be financially independent, create jobs for others, and improve their quality of life. Additionally, the program aims to contribute to the economic well-being of the Black community in the future. The project is highly responsive to the context and needs of the African American community. Structural racism, educational disparities, low levels of wealth, discrimination in borrowing, and inadequate labor market experience are some of the factors contributing to African Americans’ underrepresentation in entrepreneurship. The project aims to provide a solution by empowering the target community with education, support, and resources.
Evaluation Methods
Questions
The evaluation questions for the African American Entrepreneurship Development Program are crucial to the initiative. The first sample question focuses on the overall success of the business launch, while the second question measures the participants’ satisfaction with the program. The third question focuses on the type of training and support provided by the program.
The milestones for implementation set measurable goals that ensure the program’s effectiveness. Within the first three months of the program, a minimum of ten African American entrepreneurs should have successfully launched their businesses. Additionally, at least 50% of entrepreneurs should generate steady income within six months of launching their businesses. These milestone metrics will ensure that the percentage of African Americans in the business environment increases, leading to an overall improvement in the economy and market.
Data Sources
The data sources will involve selecting the right respondents for the surveys, interviews, and focus groups. The success of the Program depends on the accuracy and reliability of the data collected through surveys, interviews, and focus groups. The selection of respondents and the mode of data collection must be carefully considered to ensure that the program’s objectives are achieved. While the cost of data collection can be high, partnerships with other organizations and the use of online methods can help to reduce the cost. The data collected will help to determine the program’s success and identify areas that require improvement.
Timeline
The African American Entrepreneurship Development Program is a five-year project. The project has specific, measurable results, which are categorized into short-term impact, intermediate impact, and anticipated long-term impact. In the first year of the project, several milestones will be accomplished to ensure that the project is designed effectively. In the second year of the project, the focus will be on the intermediate impact of the project. By the end of the fifth year, the project will have achieved its anticipated long-term impact. The project will build on the results of the analysis and evaluation to develop and implement additional evidence-based initiatives to enhance economic outcomes for African American entrepreneurs.
Anticipated Findings
If the program is successful, it will create new possibilities for the African American community. They will be able to start and grow successful businesses, become financially independent, create jobs for other members of their community, pursue careers and businesses they are passionate about, and improve their quality of life by accessing quality education, safe housing, and healthcare. The program will contribute to improving the economic well-being of the Black community in the future by creating an additional stream of wealth for the target community.
References
Adler, K., Salanterä, S., & Zumstein-Shaha, M. (2019). Focus group interviews in child, youth, and parent research: An integrative literature review. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 18, 160940691988727. Web.
Sanghi, S., Isaacson, M., Hamilton, B. H., Hincapié, A., & Ramakrishnan, P. (2022). What can be done to promote black entrepreneurship? St. Louis Fed. Web.
Wu, M., Zhao, K., & Fils-Aime, F. (2022). Response rates of online surveys in published research: A meta-analysis. Computers in Human Behavior Reports, 7, 100206. Web.