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Developing Ecosystem Partnerships for Chicagoland Small Business Financial Readiness

Over seven years, Small Business Majority partnered with local nonprofit business service organizations through the Pathways to Entrepreneurial Growth program to strengthen financial readiness and support for Chicagoland small business owners. This report highlights key lessons learned from these partnerships, shares recommendations for building stronger small business ecosystems, and explores how collaborative investments can expand wealth-building opportunities for Main Street entrepreneurs.

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Small Business Majority urges Illinois senators to support Clean Slate legislation

On July 17, Small Business Majority Senior Fellow Geri Sanchez Aglipay sent a letter to Illinois senators urging them to support SB 1784, legislation that automates the process of sealing criminal records to help our fellow Illinoisans get back to work and strengthen communities.

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Submitted by Elena Ellingson-Cosenza on Thu, 07/17/2025 - 11:38

Geri Aglipay

As Small Business Majority's Senior Fellow, Geri Sanchez Aglipay leads policy and fundraising efforts in Illinois. Previously, she was the former presidential appointee as the Small Business Administration (SBA) Great Lakes Regional Administrator in the Biden Administration. In that role, Ms. Aglipay oversaw the agency’s field office programs, education programming and communications and public affairs strategy alongside a team of directors’ outreach operations in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio, Wisconsin and 36 sovereign tribal nations.

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Submitted by sbm-admin on Tue, 06/17/2025 - 06:09

Nikki Bravo

Nikki Bravo is a dynamic entrepreneur and community builder. As a first-generation American with West Indian-born parents, she is dedicated to economic development and community empowerment. She spent most of her early career in city government with Chicago's Department of Planning and Development and later served as the Deputy Commissioner and Chief Administrative Officer of the Public Building Commission of Chicago.

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Submitted by Elena Ellingson-Cosenza on Tue, 12/03/2024 - 10:49

Illinois entrepreneur gets a boost from Verizon to grow her business

Posted: August 5, 2024

Karla Yatckoske always thought she’d become a classroom teacher because of her passion for education. But while following her dream, she encountered a problem. While teaching, she noticed that students in a classroom of 25 were at wildly different academic levels. Karla said “some couldn’t read at all and others were bored with the curriculum and needed to be challenged more.”  Karla began tutoring students and adults in various subjects so she could help them learn faster. She later determined that running her own educational company would allow her to serve clients by being more responsive to their educational needs.

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Illinois entrepreneur advances agricultural equity

Posted: July 2, 2024

Evera Ivy never planned to take over the family business. In the early 1970s, her parents moved the family from Chicago to rural Pembroke Township, Ill. to start Ivy League Farms. Evera and her siblings initially didn’t want anything to do with the farm. However, another farmer in the area once told her that “Land is the one thing that cannot be produced or reproduced.” That wisdom stuck with her and opened her eyes to the value of her family’s land and business. 

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Small Business Majority testifies in support of Illinois Small Business Financing Transparency Act

On May 20, Midwest Director Tasha Brown testified infront of the Illinois House Financial Institutions and Licensensing Committee on behalf of SB 2234, which would enact critical protections for small business borrowers in Illinois that are falling prey to predatory lending practices. 

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Submitted by Small Business Majority on Mon, 05/20/2024 - 07:05

Empowering aging workers: A small business owner’s advocacy for retirement security

Posted: May 8, 2024

As Sylvie Hutchings approached 50, her professional growth began to stall at her corporate job. Feeling like there were fewer opportunities as she got older, the former fraud analyst decided it was finally time to realize her lifelong dream of becoming a small business owner. She searched for a franchise she could purchase so she could focus on running the business rather than worrying about creating her own marketing and building name recognition.

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Illinois small businesses support expanding occupational licensing for justice-impacted individuals

Publisher: 
Small Business Majority
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Date: 
Wednesday, April 3, 2024

Small Business Majority’s new poll of Illinois small business owners reveals strong support for legislative solutions that would remove barriers for justice-impacted individuals by making reforms to occupational licensing and debt-based driver’s license suspensions. These politically diverse small business owners believe these measures would enable employers to tap into an underutilized workforce and open up opportunities for entrepreneurship.

Pocket Guide: Equity to Reduce the Racial Wealth Gap

This pocket guide is for use by policy advocates, lawmakers, and program administrators to review whether a proposed policy or program advances equity, specifically racial equity, to help reduce the racial wealth gap. Prioritizing racial equity creates inclusive economic prosperity, especially for economically and socially disadvantaged individuals, families, and small businesses in underserved areas affected by systemic oppression. 

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