AUSTIN, Texas, Nov.
12, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Social entrepreneur
Michelle Corson of Dallas, Texas took home the $75,000 first prize for On the Road Lending, a
company which finances fuel-efficient and reliable cars, under
warranty, for lower-skilled workers with weak credit at the wrap of
BBVA Compass second annual social entrepreneur program BBVA
Momentum this week.
BBVA Momentum, a program from Madrid-based global financial service company
BBVA, has been operating since 2011 in countries around the world,
but only since last year in the U.S. through the bank's subsidiary
BBVA Compass. The goal of the program is to help social
entrepreneurs achieve scale and learn ways to further enhance their
operations. After its U.S. success in 2017, the bank expanded it to
encompass interested participants from across its seven-state
footprint, ending up with a field of 16.
On Wednesday, the five-month program wrapped up with five
finalists - On the Road Lending (Dallas), 400 Voices (Houston), Wanderstay Hotels (Houston), Skratch (Dallas) and Pathlight HOME (Orlando, Fla.) - giving a 20-minute pitch on
their business' growth plan in front of a panel of judges at the
AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center at the
University of Texas at Austin. After
deliberations, the judges awarded Corson the first place prize of
$75,000; Scott Bennett's Skratch second place with
$35,000; and Pathlight HOME's
Helaine Blum received $15,000. Winners were also treated to a finale
surprise announcement that they were invited to attend the BBVA
Momentum global summit in Madrid,
Spain in the Spring of 2019 with winners from other
countries.
"We had such a strong crop of entrepreneurs but On the Road
Lending really stood out," said BBVA Compass Director of Corporate
Responsibility & Reputation Reymundo Ocañas. "They embodied the
spirit of BBVA Momentum and leveraged the training and mentorship
they received to propel the business into the next stage of growth
and impact."
Ocañas served as one of the judges for the final pitch
competition, along with Erin Bream,
head of New Venture Creation at BBVA; Kevin
Dasch, a partner at Social Starts; Kurt Faulhaber, a partner at Stafford Capital
Partners; and Jose "Pepe" Olalla, head of Business Development at
BBVA Compass.
THE PROGRAM
BBVA Momentum includes five months of online and in-person
education from July to November 2018.
The online component is provided by Corporate Learning Alliance, a
partnership between IE Business School and the Financial Times,
while the face-to-face training is conducted by the University of Texas at Austin's McCombs School of Business. Each social
entrepreneur was paired with a mentor from BBVA Compass, selected
based on their professional background and skill set, to provide
one-on-one support for the entirety of the program. At the end of
the program, BBVA Compass awards prizes to participant enterprises
considered most sustainable and with the highest social impact. In
addition, winners may be eligible to receive further investment
opportunities, including capital to implement the growth plans
developed during the program.
The top prize for BBVA Momentum in 2017 went to Chad Houser of Dallas-based Café Momentum, a restaurant
training platform for juvenile offenders.
Since 2011, nearly 200 entrepreneurs have participated in BBVA
Momentum, which has driven the expansion of social enterprises in
Spain, Mexico, Colombia, Turkey and the
United States. Jointly, they have created thousands of jobs
and their activities have benefited more than a million people.
ABOUT THE WINNERS
On the Road Lending, Michelle
Corson (Dallas): Finances
fuel-efficient and reliable cars, under warranty, for lower-skilled
workers with weak credit. Workers are able to access the best job
they can take, no matter how far, improving their economic mobility
and the region's air quality all at once.
Skratch, Scott David Bennett
(Dallas): A mobile platform that
connects teens with individuals, organizations, and businesses in
their neighborhood to accomplish task-based work.
Pathlight HOME, Helaine Blum
(Orlando, Fla.): Uses a
housing-first model by acquiring former hotel properties and
structuring innovative financing models to create over 500 units
for disabled individuals who are at-risk for chronic
homelessness.
THE 2018 BBVA MOMENTUM FIELD IN THE U.S.
4.0 GPA, Henry Keculah
(Houston): The organization's
curriculum prepares students for college and certification
programs, and provides their parents with the tools to assist their
child with the college admissions process.
400 Voices, Gabriel Garcia
(Houston): Creates a culture of
education within the low-income Hispanic population to help them
graduate from high school and enroll in a two-year community
college or technical school, with the potential to transfer to a
four-year university.
Brave Hoods, Allison Yacht (Longmont,
Colo.): Builds self-esteem in children battling cancer by
providing them with hoodies. For each hoodie sold, one is donated
to a child fighting cancer and their siblings.
College Prep U, Jamarius Johnson
(Trussville, Ala.): A coaching
program that helps students understand what careers might be best
based on their personalities, allows them to virtually tour a
campus and provides resources for scholarships and to understand
student loans.
DuBois Institute, Michael Jackson
(Dothan, Ala.): A socially-driven
food enterprise serving low-income communities by providing
garden-based learning in a marketplace that promotes community
wellness.
Edmundite Missions Enterprises, Joseph
O'Quinn (Selma, Ala.):
Operates a kitchen incubator to create unique southern foods that
provide jobs, skills and leadership to bring individuals out of
poverty. The profits from sales of food products are reinvested in
the organization's charitable works.
Elysii, Shelly Silverstein
(Los Angeles): Allows local
communities to create a suite of rewards, such as coupons or
tokens, to connect cities, businesses, residents and others to
support a specific goal, such as raising funds for nonprofits.
GirlSpring, Kristen Greenwood
(Birmingham, Ala.): Empowers girls
by giving them access to a digital platform that allows them to
engage and learn from each other without physical barriers. This
provides access to accurate, vetted information on a variety of
"tough topics." They also offer offline programs that support girls
locally with messages of empowerment and access to inspiring female
role models and mentors.
Loqules, Jai Al Attas
(Los Angeles): Hires disadvantaged
individuals from nonprofit partners, trains them, pays them to work
at their curated experiences and opens a network for them to find
jobs, internships or mentorship in the creative industries.
Mother Kombucha, Tonya Donati
(St. Petersburg, Fla.): Creates
organic beverages which are naturally low in sugar and provide
healthy amino acids, enzymes, B vitamins and probiotics.
Purple Impression, Drakshan Khan (Dublin, Calif.): Uses the power of meaningful
fashion to lift women in Pakistan
out of poverty by providing employment and fair wages to
disadvantaged women. Through the fusion of artisan skills, creative
modern design and eco fabrics, they are able to provide sustainable
alternatives to fast fashion.
The Tiny Heights, Jennifer Drew
(Houston): Provides an affordable
housing solution that utilizes community and tiny homes that are
more sustainable, eco-friendly and tech-enabled, to produce more
first time homebuyers.
Wanderstay Hotels, Deidre Mathis
(Houston): Operates a hostel for
millennial travelers designed intentionally to connect people of
all races, ethnicities, genders and sexual orientations to break
down barriers and promote inclusivity.
BBVA MOMENTUM 2019
BBVA Compass Manager of Social Impact Tony Moraga, the U.S.
program manager for BBVA Momentum, said the goal is to grow the
2019 cohort.
"The implications of this program go well beyond the winning
companies as this program helps fuel local economies while
simultaneously addressing key issues and barriers that limit
progress for communities," he said. "It's essential for us to
support as many viable enterprises as we can to increase their
impact and shine a brighter spotlight on the social enterprise
movement."
The bank's seven-state footprint includes California, Colorado, Arizona, New
Mexico, Texas, Alabama and Florida. Social entrepreneurs based in those
states who are interested in participating should monitor
www.bbva.com for upcoming details on the 2019 program.
To learn more about BBVA Compass, visit: www.bbvacompass.com
For more news visit: www.bbva.com and
newsroom.bbvacompass.com
About BBVA Group
BBVA (NYSE: BBVA) is a customer-centric global financial
services group founded in 1857. The Group has a strong leadership
position in the Spanish market, is the largest financial
institution in Mexico, it has
leading franchises in South
America and the Sunbelt Region of the United States; and it is also the leading
shareholder in Garanti, Turkey's
biggest bank for market capitalization. Its diversified business is
focused on high-growth markets and it relies on technology as a key
sustainable competitive advantage. Corporate responsibility is at
the core of its business model. BBVA fosters financial education
and inclusion, and supports scientific research and culture. It
operates with the highest integrity, a long-term vision and applies
the best practices. More information about BBVA Group can be found
at bbva.com.
About BBVA Compass
BBVA Compass is a Sunbelt-based financial institution that
operates 645 branches, including 332 in Texas, 89 in Alabama, 63 in Arizona, 61 in California, 45 in Florida, 37 in Colorado and 18 in New Mexico. BBVA Compass ranks among the top
25 largest U.S. commercial banks based on deposit market share and
ranks among the largest banks in Alabama (2nd), Texas (4th) and Arizona (6th). BBVA Compass has been
recognized as one of the leading small business lenders by the
Small Business Administration (SBA) and ranked 6th nationally in
the total number of SBA loans originated in fiscal year 2017.
Additional information about BBVA Compass can be found under the
Investor Relations tab at bbvacompass.com. For more BBVA
Compass news, follow @BBVACompassNews on Twitter, visit
newsroom.bbvacompass.com, or visit bbva.com.
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SOURCE BBVA Compass