Startup Accelerator Program
Turn local behavior into business ownership. At scale.
Your Strategic Partner for Community-Based Economic Development
The On Our Block Startup Accelerator is a 12-week, hybrid accelerator program that equips organizations to activate, train, and fund early-stage entrepreneurs in underbanked communities—driving measurable economic activity and real business formation.
On Our Block partners with organizations representing small businesses and entrepreneurs seeking expert-level guidance to move ideas into validated businesses. This is a working accelerator where lived experience is developed into real businesses. Organizations create pathways to ownership by supporting consistent, real-world action.
PROGRAM ARCHITECTURE
FOUNDATION
WEEKS 1-3
Build something real, not theoretical
Brand-first business design
Founder story → market positioning
Problem validation rooted in lived experience
Outcome: A business concept grounded in reality, not theory
PIVOT OR PERSEVERE
WEEKS 7-9
Let the market decide
Data-driven iteration
Unit economics basics
Operational discipline
Founder coaching + accountability
Outcome: A business concept grounded in reality, not theory
GO TO MARKET
WEEKS 4-6
Earn proof,
not opinions
30-day live market validation sprint
Revenue-first testing (not vanity metrics)
Customer acquisition + local activatione
Outcome: Real customers, real transactions, real traction
FUNDING & OWNERSHIP
WEEKS 10-12
Turn traction into access
Pitch development + narrative clarity
Capital readiness (no hype, no fluff)
Non-dilutive + community-aligned funding pathways
Outcome: A business concept grounded in reality, not theory
WINTER 2024 COHORT
In Winter 2024, On Our Block launched a St. Louis accelerator cohort in partnership with the Edward Jones Foundation, supporting five entrepreneurs across edtech, logistics, beauty, and blockchain-enabled real estate. Each founder received a $5,000 grant and 12 weeks of advisory support to move from idea to first revenue.
That momentum carried forward, with three portfolio companies securing follow-on institutional funding from Goldman Sachs’ One Million Black Women: Black in Business program, LvlUp Ventures, and the Illinois Department of Human Services—demonstrating clear pathways from local validation to broader capital access.
Designed for Organizations Driving Local Economic Growth
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Workforce + economic mobility programs
Small business pipeline development
Public funding deployment
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Community reinvestment
Entrepreneur pipeline development
Engagement beyond traditional education
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Entrepreneurship programming
Justice-impacted populations
Economic empowerment initiatives
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Place-based investment
Supplier diversity pipelines
Community impact strategies