JPMorgan Chase Commits $750,000 to the National Veteran Small Business Coalition Education Foundation

TYSONS CORNER, Va., Aug. 2, 2023 /PRNewswire/ — JPMorgan Chase has made a philanthropic commitment of $750,000 to the National Veteran Small Business Coalition Education Foundation (NVSBC-EF) focused on veteran entrepreneurship in federal contracting. The gift fuels NVSBC-EF’s expanding mentorship, counseling, training, and networking programs in key government contracting hubs across America, from San Diego, California to Norfolk, Virginia.

“This critical funding comes at a time when we are getting tremendous community response to our entrepreneurship programs,” says Scott Jensen, NVSBC-EF’s Executive Director. “We view the partnership with JPMorgan Chase as a cornerstone commitment, and we will build on it to deliver tremendous results for America’s veterans.” NVSBC-EF’s programs touch individual veteran entrepreneurs trying to grow their Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) companies in towns from coast to coast.

Says Cate Costa, Vice President of Global Philanthropy at JPMorgan Chase, “Business ownership is an important avenue for wealth building, and yet many veterans of color, women, and service-disabled veterans lack the capital, training, and other critical resources needed to buy, start, or grow businesses. JPMorgan Chase is pleased to be supporting NVSBC-EF to help bridge these gaps.”  Today 47,000 veterans own small businesses serving the federal marketplace, but only one in four have actually been awarded a federal contract.

The JPMorgan Chase-supported pilot, entitled “Veterans Mean Business in Government Contracting,” will enable NVSBC-EF to hire additional staff and reach under-served communities across America. The pilot is predicated on best practices in federal contracting, particularly that veterans who are ‘Procurement Ready’ have enhanced access to opportunities to start, operate, sustain, and grow competitive and strong government contracting businesses.

To put the challenge in historical perspective, right after World War II about half of all veterans owned their own business. Today that number has plummeted to single digits. JPMorgan Chase’s support is focused on reversing this trend. Not only do veterans make good business leaders, but veterans hire other veterans at much higher rates than other employers. “It’s a win-win for veterans, their families and an economic boon for communities,” says NVSBC-EF’s Executive Director Scott Jensen.

ABOUT NVSBC-EF
NVSBC, founded eleven years ago as a grassroots industry group, has pivoted to become a significant force in federal contracting serving veterans. The organization’s training, mentoring, and networking programs were recognized by the Small Business Administration and supported through SBA’s recent “Community Navigator Pilot Program” national initiative. The nonprofit works to:

• Bring equity and access to ALL transitioning service members, pragmatically supporting their entrepreneurship journey
• Provide procurement training, networking, and mentoring to ALL veterans serving Federal agencies, running virtual trainings and two national conferences
• Support the hiring of our heroes by boosting veteran owned GovCon businesses who hire other vets (many located in economically needy areas of the country)
• Advocate with Federal agencies, the White House, and Congress on behalf of SDVOSBs, to increase the set-aside program from 3 percent to 5 percent and to maintain parity if those percentages are increased
• Partner with the Institute for Veterans and Military Families at Syracuse University to collect key data for researchers, analysts, policymakers, and service organizations on veteran entrepreneurs (and their families) who serve the federal government

NVSBC-EF is a 501c3 dedicated to veteran entrepreneurship in federal contracting.

For more information, contact:
Zack Armstrong
(269) 932-8125
[email protected] 

SOURCE National Veteran Small Business Coalition Education Foundation