Babson Awarded Grant with Kansas City Consortium by Kauffman Foundation

Babson College is part of a consortium of Kansas City organizations to receive an inaugural Collective Impact grant from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation.  

The Kauffman Foundation awarded planning grants to six coalitions of high-capacity organizations committed to creating systems-change strategies to close economic mobility gaps, advance equitable opportunity, and spur economic growth in the Greater Kansas City Region, creating a model for the country. 

“Babson College and the Kauffman Foundation have a long history of impactful collaboration,” said Babson President Stephen Spinelli Jr. MBA’92, PhD. “We are proud to be part of this important initiative to develop a comprehensive framework for integrating entrepreneurship curriculum across educational entities and discipline and to help drive systems-level change in the Kansas City region,” 

Babson is the only organization outside of the Greater Kansas City region included in the grant, along with 48 local organizations. Babson is a member of the Entrepreneurship Education Initiative, bringing its entrepreneurial expertise to help create equity through Kansas City. The initiative will be led by Kansas City Kansas Community College and include Piper Schools, Kansas City Kansas Public Schools, University of Missouri–Kansas City, The Porter House KC, and The Toolbox KC. 

“We’re grateful for the opportunity to work with such impactful organizations to address the needs of the community and create more opportunity through entrepreneurship,” said D. R. Widder MBA’99, Babson’s vice president of innovation. “We’re also eager to scale this collaborative approach with colleague organizations nationally to support our strategy to impact communities everywhere.” 

The Collective Impact funding includes two stages. The first grant provides resources to develop collaborative action plans in October aimed at narrowing the economic mobility gap. Each coalition will then be eligible to submit implementation grant proposals for up to $20 million to begin advancing their plans.   

“These organizations are tackling deep, complex challenges in our community—work that requires trust, collaboration, and a shared commitment to change,” said DeAngela Burns-Wallace, president and CEO of the Kauffman Foundation. “Real progress happens when organizations come together, align their efforts, and build strong relationships.”