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Commission reenergizes entrepreneurship and mentorship initiatives, seeks fundraising for $25,000 startup cohort
Summary
The commission reactivated a $25,000 '50 Female Startup' training initiative and approved a mentorship program 'Empower Her' split by age groups; board members agreed on outreach to chambers, state representatives and county leaders to raise funds and on an application/select process for participants.
The North Miami Commission for Women reviewed two program initiatives on April 15: a $25,000 "50 Female Startup" training cohort and a mentorship program called "Empower Her." Commissioners agreed to restart fundraising and planning for both.
The "50 Female Startup" initiative would offer six-to-seven weeks of training to 50 women living in North Miami who are not yet business owners and want to open a first business. The commission previously approved a budget of $25,000 for the contract; commissioners reiterated that the board is responsible for raising those funds. They proposed multiple fundraising strategies: letters to the county mayor, outreach to Miami-Dade and North Miami chambers of commerce, direct appeals to local small-business owners (offering advertising during the program), and requests to state representatives who represent North Miami.
Commissioners agreed that donations would be made to the City of North Miami general fund with a memo line such as "North Miami Commission for Woman"; Norissa will log donations and forward checks to staff for deposit. The commission assigned specific members (Norissa and Taisha were named in discussion) to lead the fundraising effort and asked staff to circulate the trainer presentation and recorded video to the board.
On mentorship, the board approved development of the "Empower Her" program, proposing three age-track cohorts (16–18, 18–25 and 25+), monthly meetings with curricula tailored by age group, and a parental-consent process for participants under 18. Commissioners asked LaFortune and others to co-lead curriculum development and to return a working curriculum document within three to four weeks.
No formal contract was awarded at the meeting; fundraising and curriculum development were set as next steps and staff and board leads were assigned follow-up tasks.
