South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership Celebrates HustleSBE Cohort Six Graduation

Posted by Liz Folkerts
women entrepreneurs, HustleSBE, minority entrepreneurs, enterpreneurs, Diversity & Inclusion, Event
| June 8, 2023
Jess Koscher leads a session for the HustleSBE Cohort Six program.

MISHAWAKA, Ind. (Jun. 7, 2023) — The South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership celebrated the graduation of its sixth HustleSBE cohort. The business bootcamp provides support and assistance to minority and women entrepreneurs across the five-county region.

This eight-session program is dedicated to bringing resources on topics including capital, certifications, financial management, and human resources to minority and women-owned businesses. Participants are required to have been in business for at least one year.

The classes were led by HustleSBE facilitator Jess Koscher of Write Connections | strategy + design, LLC, a HustleSBE Cohort Three graduate. The Cohort Six members were joined by guest speakers – including Jacqueline Barton of Specialized Staffing, Kyle Chamberlin with THK Law, Jenny Frech from Soapy Gnome and Alan Steele from the Indiana Small Business Development Center – sharing their expert knowledge in a variety of topics of interest.

“HustleSBE was a great experience,” said Jasmine Wall, owner of Goshen’s The Imagination Spot. “Our facilitator, Jess Koscher, is full of knowledge, ideas and is an inspiration. I loved learning from all the speakers every week who are experts in their field. All the participants are in various stages of their business, and it was great to brainstorm together and learn from each other.”

HustleSBE sessions were held at the LIFT Training Room at the South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership Office. The applicant pool for this cohort was 61 percent African American or Black business owners, and 39 percent Multiracial, Hispanic or Latino, Asian American or Caucasian or White business owners, with 87 percent female and 13 percent male. Cohort Six included businesses from apparel and fashion, retail, consumer services, and marketing and advertising.

“This new cohort joins a growing family of HustleSBE graduates,” said Bethany Hartley, President and CEO of the South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership. “The passion and dedication these graduates have shown for building their business is an inspiration, and the connections they’ve made will prove invaluable. These entrepreneurs help make our region a better place.”

Cohort Six Graduates include:

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About South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership
The South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership is a collaboration of the economic development partners from 47 smart connected communities in northern Indiana and southwest Michigan. The South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership focuses on a long-term systemic approach to advance the region’s economy by aligning the efforts of various stakeholders around five key areas: educating a world-class workforce, recruiting and retaining great talent, attracting and growing new economy companies in complement to our remarkably strong manufacturing industries, promoting inclusion and sparking opportunities for minorities and helping entrepreneurs thrive. The South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership seeks to unify and collaborate so that together, the communities across the region to work together to achieve what cannot be done individually. For more information about the Regional Partnership, visit SouthBendElkhart.org.

Media Contact
Liz Folkerts
South Bend – Elkhart Regional Partnership
lfolkerts@southbendelkhart.org