BEAVERTON, Ore. – Rivermark Community Credit Union announced that TiE Oregon has become the first-ever recipient of the newly-established Rivermark Community Fund of the Oregon Community Foundation. TiE Oregon will receive $15,000 from the credit union and the fund in support of its mission to inspire, challenge and equip the next generation of entrepreneurs. The funds will be used specifically to expand the TiE Young Entrepreneurs (TYE) program, which targets promising entrepreneurs in local high schools.
According to Scott Burgess, president and CEO of Rivermark, TiE Oregon embodies the vision of the Rivermark Community Fund to empower business-focused nonprofits in their mission to encourage innovative ideas, mentor emerging entrepreneurs, and help local small businesses grow.
“The Rivermark Community Fund was created to build bridges of opportunity between promising entrepreneurs, small businesses and the resources needed for their success,” said Burgess. “With its focus on mentorship and equipping students to become future entrepreneurs and business owners, TiE Oregon is the perfect organization to become the fund’s first recipient in support of its good work.”
Now in its third year, the TiE Young Entrepreneurs program is open to all high school students in the Portland Metro area, with a satellite program at Benson Polytechnic High School in Portland’s Eastside. Seasoned innovators and entrepreneurs mentor high school students from diverse ethnic and socio-economic backgrounds based upon a business-focused curriculum that combines hands-on experience, creative collaboration and practical instruction. The program runs annually from November through May and concludes with a competition in which students present business ideas and plans they’ve developed over the course of the year.
The past two competition winners are currently in the funding phases of their business plans. One high school winner created an agricultural drone to help farmers identify and spot-treat crops in need of attention. A second winner developed an early detection medical device for heart disease and other health conditions.
Rivermark launched the fund with an initial $100,000 endowment from the credit union, with a goal to generate $1 million in assets through organizational donations and staff and member contributions.