A total of $1.3 million in funding has been approved by the MTC Board of Directors for the inaugural round of the Regional Node Grant Program to provide funds for the implementation or execution of each region’s strategy for the establishment or continued operations of regional entrepreneurial nodes throughout Missouri.
The goal of the Regional Node Grant Program is to award grant-based financial support for the creation of regional “nodes” which are intended to incentivize more of Missouri’s communities to successfully coalesce their assets in support of innovation and entrepreneurship through coordinated partnerships among entrepreneurial service organizations within the node. A successful node serves as a front door for the regional entrepreneurial community, allowing entrepreneurs to more easily access the resources they need to launch or grow their businesses, thereby expanding the state’s entrepreneurial capacity.
This grant program builds upon the strategies developed in the Catalyzing Innovation Report, and aligns MTC’s priority to fund organizations and programs aligned with the report’s strategies and action items.
The inaugural 2024 Regional Node Grant Program recipients will receive two-year grants to establish six regional nodes across Missouri encompassing 69 Missouri counties and covering over 60% of counties in the state. The next proposal round, where there is an opportunity to add additional nodes and county coverage, is anticipated in the spring of 2025.
The following organizations’ 2024 Regional Node Grant Program Proposals were approved:
Codefi Foundation on Rural Innovation
The Codefi Foundation on Rural Innovation is joined by core node members, the Ozarks Small Business Incubator and the Southeast Missouri Regional Economic Development, Inc., in establishing a regional node in the southeast region of Missouri on the east side of the Southern Missouri Innovation Network (Innovate SOMO). The node will allow collaboration with stakeholders and organizations to revise comprehensive and strategic plans to fill gaps in alignment with MTC’s framework, will coordinate a region-wide entrepreneurship week event, and act as a “front-door” to resources throughout the region.
The Missouri Innovation Center is joined by core node members, the Missouri Small Business Development Centers (SBDC) at the University of Missouri and Moberly Area Community College, in establishing a regional node in central Missouri. This node will work to change the culture of the region by telling the stories of entrepreneurs throughout central Missouri; demonstrating to would-be entrepreneurs that this is not an activity limited to the coasts and major metropolitan areas; identify, vet, curate, and deliver a catalog of entrepreneurial resources; identify gaps in needed resources and assistance and serve as the initiator of change by either developing those resources in concert with their partners or leverage other regional nodes throughout the state, and provide central Missouri with a singular portal to access resources as well as a space for entrepreneurs in the region to congregate and share.
MSU efactory is joined by core node members, the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce and the Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce, in establishing a regional node in southwest Missouri. The regional node will strengthen partnerships and eliminate silos across institutions and service providers within the entrepreneurial ecosystem through regional strategy and alignment.
OPO Startups Foundation (Confluence Tech Hub)
The OPO Startups Foundation is joined by core node members, OPO Startups, Economic Development Council (EDC) of St. Charles County, Lindenwood University, St. Charles Community College, and the St. Charles County Government, to establish the “Confluence Tech Hub”, a regional node dedicated to fostering a thriving ecosystem of technology entrepreneurship in St. Charles, Warren and Lincoln counties through a framework of six pillars 1) organization, 2) promotion, 3) recruitment, 4) funding, 5) education and programs, and 6) impact.
TechSTL is joined by core node members, Capacity, EcoMap Technologies, Tenacity, News Lab, Inc., and Hapacity in establishing a regional node in the St. Louis Region via StartupSTL. The node is committed to connecting the small business and high-growth startup community of the St. Louis Metro area to resources, capital, and each other.
The University of Missouri – Kansas City (UMKC) Innovation Center
The UMKC Innovation Center is joined by core node members, KCSourceLink, SourceLink, The Toolbox, Porter House KC, and Square One Mid-Continent Library, in establishing a regional node in the Kansas City region. The node will act as a front door via KC SourceLink to the Kansas City Region entrepreneurial ecosystem; work to increase collaboration and resource sharing for entrepreneurs; and, through partnerships, have community navigators on-site in under resourced communities.
