Fellowship Ramps Up Recruitment for 2026-27 Cohort
The Initiators Fellowship is recruiting for its 2026-2027 cohort. Launched by the Initiative Foundation and its Minnesota Initiative Foundation partners, the two-year program provides a suite of supports for emerging entrepreneurs in Greater Minnesota whose business idea includes a socially beneficial outcome.
Current and aspiring business owners who reside and operate in the 53 counties and six Native nations served by the Initiative Foundation, Northwest Minnesota Foundation, Southwest Initiative Foundation and West Central Initiative are eligible to apply. The application is open May 1 to June 16. Learn more and contact program staff for a conversation at fellows.greaterminnesota.net.
The Initiators Fellowship provides the next generation of rural leaders the opportunity to create change while building their business and personal leadership capacity. The program provides wrap-around training and mentoring—plus a $30,000 stipend annually for two years—to support Fellows and their social enterprise ideas to improve Greater Minnesota communities.
“If you are committed to revitalizing Greater Minnesota with a business whose mission goes deep to address social or environmental issues, then this is an opportunity to accelerate your growth and the success of your venture,” said Christine Metzo, Initiators Fellowship program manager.
Daniel Barrientez, a 2022-2023 Initiators Fellow, found a wealth of support through a network of Fellowship connections who cared about him and his idea to create a felon-friendly food truck business.
“My experience in the Fellowship helped bring my vision to life … by giving me financial support, which was pivotal for me to start my business,” Barrientez said. “The Fellowship really helped me [build my confidence to] speak in front of people, which is something I wasn’t good at before the Fellowship.”
Learn more about current and past Initiators Fellowship cohorts, including Kris Shelstad, a 2022-2023 Fellow who found success and deepened community connections through her venture, Madison Mercantile—a multi-use space where people from her hometown of 1,500 residents can come together.
“The basic mission is to provide an accessible, equitable and inclusive space for people to become entrepreneurs, meet new friends and build community,” Shelstad said. “The biggest resource [of the Fellowship] is the connections you make. That’s not something that ends when the Fellowship ends. That connectivity, that camaraderie, that emotional support … will continue far into the future.”
Additional Resources
For questions about the program, contact Christine Metzo, Initiators Fellowship program manager at the Initiative Foundation. To speak with a member of the Initiators Fellowship Steering Team in your Minnesota Initiative Foundation region, contact:
- Phil Knutson at Northwest Minnesota Foundation
Briana Mumme at Southwest Initiative Foundation
Anna Wasescha at West Central Initiative.