Elena Ellingson-Cosenza's blog

On May 11, Virginia Gov. Abigail Spanberger signed legislation to establish a Commonwealth-run paid family and medical leave program. Small Business Majority Virginia Council Members Monica Jackson and Shirley Modlin attended the signing ceremony in Richmond to show their support for the new program. As a childcare provider and small business owner, Monica has a unique understanding of how paid leave benefits both working families and small businesses.

Of Colorado’s 730,000 small businesses, 34,000 are Black-owned. These businesses are a quickly growing and vital element of our economy, with more than 8,600 founded in the past two years. Yet, Black-owned small businesses still face barriers to success like high healthcare costs and accessing capital.

Ruben Mauricio built RPM Diesel Services in Texas without advertising, a website or business cards—just character, grit, and word of mouth. After serving time in prison, he turned lessons from the Prison Entrepreneurship Program into a successful oilfield service business, overcoming barriers to financing, hiring and growth along the way.

Suli Kenyatta is the newest member of Small Business Majority’s Outreach Team, supporting entrepreneurship and the small business ecosystem in Northern California. Our outreach team helps entrepreneurs on two fronts: It advocates for policies that benefit small businesses and it offers webinars and in-person events that offer entrepreneurs tips on how to grow their businesses. This work is more important than ever as the United States has seen record small business growth in recent years, yet we still struggle nationwide to help small businesses access capital, afford healthcare and childcare, and compete on a level playing field with large corporations.

Having spent most of her adulthood working in retail, New York City-based entrepreneur Caroline Weaver noticed that while many people understood the importance of shopping locally, few incorporated the habit into their daily lives. Wanting to change this, Caroline trekked over 2,000 miles through the five boroughs, visiting every small business she could find. 

Congress has big plans to reform the tax code this year. To help ensure that America’s diverse small business economy has a seat at the negotiating table, Small Business Majority and Main Street Alliance (MSA) partnered to launch the Small Business Tax Reform (SBTR) Coalition, a national initiative to advocate for a tax code that better prioritizes the needs of America’s entrepreneurs.

Sharon Kalenzi always envisioned herself as an entrepreneur. Growing up, Sharon was inspired by her mother, a small business owner who was very involved in their community. And while she and her husband were already co-owners of Rock Creek Veterinary Hospital in Broomfield, Colo., Sharon always wanted a small business of her own.

Alberto Sanchez is the newest member of Small Business Majority’s Outreach Team, supporting entrepreneurship in Southern California. Our outreach team helps entrepreneurs on two fronts: It advocates for policies that benefit small businesses and it offers webinars and in-person events that offer entrepreneurs tips on how to grow their businesses.

Small Business Majority and Rocky Mountain MicroFinance Institute (RMMFI) convened an Inclusive Small Business Roundtable on December 4 with Colorado policymakers and agency leaders and a group of diverse small business owners ahead of the upcoming 2025 legislative session. The goal was to help legislators and agency attendees better understand the experiences and barriers that entrepreneurs face when starting and growing their businesses. 

Although Jessi Burg loved her career in seasonal industries like environmental education, outdoor guiding and agriculture, she faced a big problem.

“I wanted to make a living wage,” she said. 

With that goal in mind, the future Colorado entrepreneur thought about the small business owners she knew. They seemed to have more control over their wages, work schedule and life. This realization led her to found a landscaping business, Pears to Perennials, in 2016.