News and Events

Dear Foundation Friends,

In 2011, the Foundation provided lead sponsorship support for the production of Micro Business for Teens: Starting a Micro Business, to be broadcast on Western Reserve PBS and nationally. On February 9, we attended the taping of the show at Kent State University before a live studio audience of enthusiastic students, parents, and teachers. Carol Topp, CPA and author of the Micro Business for Teens book series, hosted the show, providing tips to teens on how to start and operate a micro business while maintaining balance between school and work. Her practical advice was interspersed with inspiring taped interviews with successful teens discussing their micro business experiences.

Among the audience members were champions of youth entrepreneurship from across our region. It was gratifying to be in the audience to witness this professional production in the making and realize that the collaborative work of all our partners will now lead to an educational program that will be available nationally. It was a celebration of all that we have accomplished in recent years by working together to advance entrepreneurship education in Northeast Ohio. The collaborative spirit of the project included generous funding from co-funders: The Veale Foundation, The Fred A. Lennon Charitable Trust, Dominion, Ohio Small Business Development Centers, Hudson Extrusions Inc., Deluxe Corp., and JAG Ohio. We thank everyone, including Western Reserve Public Media, for their dedication to excellence and for sharing our vision about the power of entrepreneurship.

The program will premiere locally on February 23 during National Entrepreneurship Week. During the spring of 2012, the program will be released to PBS stations nationwide. After that, the program DVD will be distributed to area high schools for viewing. Again, Northeast Ohio proves that the region is indeed working on the forefront of entrepreneurship education.

Deborah Hoover
President & CEO

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The Foundation is pleased to announce the election of two new Trustees in 2012, Patrick T. Finley and J. Michael Hochschwender.

Patrick T. Finley is managing partner of OMNI Property Companies in Cleveland, commercial real estate development and consulting firm. He has served as Chairman of the Cleveland Young Presidents Organization, was involved in the Young Entrepreneurs Organization, and is past president of the Northern Ohio Chapter of the National Association of Industrial and Office Properties. Currently, he is Vice Chairman of the Board of North Coast Community Homes and serves on the Cuyahoga County Library Foundation Board. He also volunteers for Junior Achievement in elementary school classrooms. Mr. Finley graduated from The University of Akron with a degree in finance.

J. Michael Hochschwender has more than 20 years of corporate management and consulting experience. Currently, he is President and CEO of The Smithers Group, a position he has held since 1996. Mr. Hochschwender holds a master’s degree from the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania and a bachelor’s degree from Tulane University. He also served five years in the U.S. Navy SEAL Teams, deploying to Southeast Asia and the Middle East. He is active in local health, civic, and educational organizations, currently serving on the boards of the FirstMerit Bank N.A., Ohio Foundation of Independent Colleges, and The University of Akron Foundation. Previously Michael has served on the boards of the Akron General Medical Center, the Greater Akron Chamber of Commerce, Old Trail School, and The American Council of Independent Laboratories.

“Our recently-elected Trustees bring a breadth of expertise and knowledge to the Foundation Board that will serve us well as we steward our resources and tackle new entrepreneurship initiatives. We welcome Pat and Mike to the Foundation and look forward to engaging them in our work,” Foundation President and CEO Deborah D. Hoover said.

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Trustees of The Burton D. Morgan Foundation awarded grants of nearly $660,000 in January to promote entrepreneurship and entrepreneurship education in the Northeast Ohio region, as well as to support programs in Hudson and at charitable organizations serving the region.

Foundation President Deborah D. Hoover noted, “The grants made at our winter Board meeting emphasized programs that support student interns working in entrepreneurial settings.  We believe strongly that these entrepreneurship experiences are critical building blocks for students considering a career in entrepreneurship.” She added, “We are gratified to see a wellspring of support from organizations and businesses in the region willing to play a role in creating these opportunities for young people.”

Grants approved by Foundation Trustees in January include:

• Akron SCORE – Up to $20,000 for administrative expenses.
• Consortium for Entrepreneurship Education – $15,000 for annual conference planning and promotion and for scholarships for Northeast Ohio teachers to attend the 2012 conference.
• Emmanuel Christian Academy – $13,130 for a summer 2012 entrepreneurship camp for 4th-8th graders.
• Entrepreneurs EDGE – $50,000 for the 2012 EDGE Fellows summer internship program.
• Entrepreneurship Education Consortium – $80,000 for support of 2012 Entrepreneurship Immersion Week and the 2012 ideaLabs business concept competition for undergraduates.
• Northeast Ohio Council on Higher Education (NOCHE) – $40,000 for the 2012 Entrepreneurial Internship Program.
• Purdue University – Up to $150,000 over two years for the Burton D. Morgan Interns program at Northeast Ohio start-ups in summer 2012 and summer 2013.

In addition to supporting entrepreneurship initiatives, the Foundation’s Trustees made three grants to Hudson, Ohio, institutions. The Trustees made a proactive grant of $50,000 to the Hudson City Schools Foundation for the district’s new stadium. The funds are for a concession stand to be named in memory of Burt Morgan. “The Foundation is pleased that the Hudson Memorial Stadium campaign has reached its fundraising goal,” Ms. Hoover said.  “We believe that this community project will create valuable leadership opportunities for students by supplementing classroom lessons with experiential learning.” 

Also in Hudson, the First Congregational Church of Hudson received $30,000 for 2012 operating support. And Western Reserve Academy was awarded a grant of $116,000 over two years for the Burton D. Morgan Leadership Program in 2012-13 and 2013-14. The grant will enable the independent school to infuse leadership learning and experiences in academic and co-curricular programs reaching all students.

In recognition of community needs that fall outside the Foundation’s primary mission, the Trustees periodically make one-time grants on a proactive basis to deserving charitable organizations that serve the local area. The following proactive grants were awarded for 2011:

• American Red Cross of Summit & Portage Counties – $25,000 for local disaster relief.
• Business Volunteers Unlimited – $20,000 toward technology-related costs associated with the merger of BVU with the Akron-based Center for Nonprofit Excellence.
• Conservancy for Cuyahoga Valley National Park – $5,000 toward capital costs to renovate the Cuyahoga Valley National Park’s new retail space in Peninsula.
• Family and Community Services Inc. – $7,000 to build and equip the Concierge Office in Valor Home, a transitional housing facility for homeless veterans in Summit County.
• Flashes of Hope – $1,500 for photo sessions of pediatric cancer patients at Akron Children’s Hospital.
• Magical Theatre Company – $5,000 to upgrade the lighting system.
• Mobile Meals Inc. – $28,500 toward the purchase of a specially outfitted, meal-delivery vehicle.

Since last September, the Foundation also approved several small grants to advance youth, collegiate, and adult entrepreneurship initiatives, as well as programs in the Foundation’s home community of Hudson. Among the recipients were:

Austen BioInnovation Institute in Akron for the 2012 BEST Medicine Engineering Fair for youth ($5,000); Canton Regional SCORE to strengthen the chapter’s marketing and outreach program ($5,000); Gilmour Academy for entrepreneurship programs in 2011-12 ($5,000); Manufacturing Advocacy & Growth Network for the Resource Room at the Incubator at MAGNET ($10,000 challenge grant); North Union Farmers Market for the 2012 business development conference “A Time to Grow” ($5,000); Prepared 4 Life to support the participation of Northeast Ohio in Lemonade Day 2012 ($5,000); Hudson City Schools to bring the Earth Balloon to Ellsworth Hill Elementary School ($1,500); Hudson Community Foundation for the Destination Hudson Visitor Center ($4,650); and Newborns in Need for the purchase of new sewing machines and material for the Hudson chapter ($3,000).

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Though it seems the winter has yet to set in, spring is quickly approaching and plans for Lemonade Day 2012 in Northeast Ohio are in full swing!

With funding from the Foundation, University School’s Entrepreneur Institute, led by Greg Malkin, is spearheading the initiative this year. Many new participants and partners have already joined the program. Lemonade Day Northeast Ohio was introduced in 2011, with four schools participating. In 2012, 19 schools, districts, and organizations representing more than 1,300 students already have formally committed to participate, including schools in Akron, Hudson, Canton, Youngstown, and Lakewood, and such organizations as the Girl Scouts of North East Ohio, Junior Achievement, and the University Park Alliance.

Mr. Malkin has secured several important sponsorships throughout the region in support of Lemonade Day Northeast Ohio. The Knight Foundation has partnered with the University Park Alliance to bring Lemonade Day to the University Park neighborhood in Akron. Kovach Design provided valuable graphic design services for the Lemonade Day brochure, letterhead, and business cards. Heinen’s Fine Foods has signed on as a corporate sponsor: every participating student’s Lemonade Day backpack will include coupons for discounts on lemonade supplies purchased at any Heinen’s location. The Hudson Economic Development Corporation is providing funding for the Lemonade Day curriculum for all fifth graders in the Hudson district, and Hudson Mayor William A. Currin will issue a proclamation that May will be “Lemonade Day Month.” We are extremely grateful for the regional community’s support of this program.

With so many districts and organizations participating, Lemonade Day Northeast Ohio will span every weekend in May, including Memorial Day weekend. Keep an eye out for the young entrepreneurs in your community and support their efforts by sampling their lemonade recipes!

For more information and to get involved, please visit lemonadedayneo.org.

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Paula McCulloch, Office Manager for The Burton D. Morgan Foundation, will retire from her position in May. Paula has served as the Foundation’s Office Manager since 2006, and before that, worked at The Margaret Clark Morgan Foundation and Park Place Business Services, a small business started by Burton D. Morgan.

The Foundation appreciates Paula’s many accomplishments and long association with Mr. Morgan’s business and foundation interests. While Paula’s title may be “Office Manager,” her role at the Foundation is much broader – it includes bookkeeper, event planner, photographer, green practices guru, gardener, chef, and “reality check” manager! She will be greatly missed by all of us. We wish Paula great happiness with her husband and grandchildren and many years of wonderful outdoor adventures in Ohio, Michigan, and beyond!

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The Ohio Board of Regents is required by law to produce an annual conditions report in order to keep the Ohio legislature well informed about the state of higher education. This year the report will provide an in-depth look at research commercialization, including ways that the system can be strengthened and improved. The nine-member Board of Regents has assembled a Technology Transfer and Commercialization Task Force to produce this report, and Regent Vinod Gupta has been charged with chairing this Task Force. The members include representatives of industry, government, philanthropy, higher education, venture development organizations, and financial institutions.

The Task Force has divided into sub-committees (Academia, Capital, Government, Industry, Technology, and Workforce) to address the detailed research and information gathering that must be completed in order to produce the report. Each sub-committee will hold one to two forums in different corners of the state during the month of February. Foundation President Deborah Hoover is a member of the Task Force and is working with the Academia sub-committee. She helped organize an Academia Forum held on February 14 at Case Western Reserve University. Approximately 50 people attended the Forum and offered their perspectives on how technology transfer offices can connect more deliberately with industry and how universities and industry can work to overcome barriers to success. The final conditions report will be ready for presentation to the legislature by late May.

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