The concept behind Klamath IDEA was to bring education, economic development, private business, financial institutions, and municipal, county, and state governments together with entrepreneurs, innovators, and successful businesses to accelerate job creation and promote marketable commodities to expand the local and state economy.
Project identification and recruitment efforts included forums and presentations to the community (including students), outreach to other start-up and accelerator programs to identify clients, and the creation of an innovation fair to showcase ideas from around the region.
Solution
The Klamath IDEA (Inspire Development – Energize Acceleration) board developed criteria for program participation that can be applied across disciplines to identify potentially successful projects and is currently sustainable through equity participation in supported projects, reinvestment of monies earned through program services, and ongoing fundraising activities to capitalize expansion.
The Klamath IDEA (now through the Klamath Chamber of Commerce) provides support to entrepreneurs for start-up, business expansion, product development and commercialization—with the long term goal of sustainable job creation in Klamath County. This project continues to support the entrepreneurial spirit, particularly when it leads to new jobs and enriches the community and its economy. The IDEA is the starting point for a venture to grow, mature, and ultimately move on to become a successful member of the greater business community. Klamath IDEA brings education, economic development, private business, financial institutions, municipal, county, and state governments together with entrepreneurs, innovators, and successful businesses to accelerate job creation and promote marketable commodities to expand the local and state economy.
The Klamath IDEA Center for Entrepreneurship officially opened April 2017.