The Board of Directors of the Network of Jewish Human Service Agencies, following the recommendations of an independent Grants and Opportunities Committee, recently chose three communities to participate in the Intensive Incubation Program of the NJHSA Jewish Poverty Challenge, an initiative of the Network’s Center for Innovation & Research. The goal of the program is to support agencies with their efforts to achieve increased impact and to advance an innovation in their efforts to address the complicated dynamics associated with addressing Jewish Poverty.
To move forward with the Intensive Incubation Program, NJHSA has engaged Start Co. to work with Jewish Family Service of Columbus, OH, Jewish Family & Children’s Service of Greater Philadelphia, PA and a collaboration of Network member agencies from Michigan: Jewish Family Service of Metropolitan Detroit, based in West Bloomfield, MI, JVS Human Services, based in Southfield, MI and Yad Ezra, based in Berkley, MI. Start Co. will guide these agencies through an entrepreneurship building process to move their new idea(s) forward or enhance an existing initiative. The process will include intense client discovery and triage, prototyping, experimentation, and building a business case worthy of more resources. The incubation program will last 3-6 months; providing approximately 60 hours of expert consultation assistance.
“The Network plays a critical role in supporting agencies around the country that are on the front lines in addressing Jewish poverty on the local level,” said Jerry Rubin, Chair of the Network’s Innovation Committee. “This intensive incubation program will guide these three communities through a client and system discovery process, as they mock-up, design, and build services and programs, and then finally create an operational and organizational framework to support clients, funders and partners, all as part of their overall solution.”
Reuben Rotman, President & CEO of the Network added that “These deserving agencies are eager to attack the challenges of developing a successful road map for their proposed high impact and sustainable solutions to Jewish poverty.”
About Start Co
Start Co is a Memphis based consulting firm which focuses its efforts on supporting social innovation with non-profits, municipalities and the corporate sector. Start Co. has focused several of its projects on working with communities to develop innovative responses to poverty. For more information visit http://neverstop.co.
