About RISE Collaborative
Regional Investment in Startups & Entrepreneurs
RISE Collaborative brings together makers, entrepreneurs, and innovators of all backgrounds, interests, and experiences from across our region to support the growth of entrepreneurship and innovation in Southern Virginia. Through our programs, events, and online network, you’ll gain a supportive community of peers, direct access to business resource providers, dynamic training and skill-building content, and value-added networking opportunities.
Story
RISE Collaborative was created in 2021 to drive the development of a more inclusive and vibrant regional economy in which makers, entrepreneurs, innovators, and service providers interact organically and collaboratively. Our mission is to enhance equity and access to entrepreneurship and innovation for people who have been underserved based on geographic location (anyone who lives, works, or owns a business in Southern Virginia), and for people who have been underrepresented based on race, gender, religion, or other factors. We are doing this by creating regionally-relevant incubator services and accelerator programs that can be accessed at many locations across our service area.
Service Area
RISE Collaborative serves 15 localities in rural Southern Virginia through a network of hubs and partners. Our service area aligns with the service area of GO Virginia Region 3, which includes:
- Halifax County
- Charlotte County
- Mecklenburg County
- Lunenburg County
- Brunswick County
- Buckingham County
- Prince Edward County
- Cumberland County
- Amelia County
- Nottoway County
- Patrick County
- Martinsville-Henry County
- Pittsylvania County
- City of Danville
Danville/Pittsylvania County Hub: The Dan River Region Entrepreneur Ecosystem (DRREE) serves Danville, Pittsylvania County, and Caswell County, NC, through funding from the Danville Regional Foundation. The DRREE includes many organizations, not limited to: The Launch Place, the River District Association, the Danville-Pittsylvania County Chamber of Commerce, Averett University, Danville Community College, and the Longwood Small Business Development Center (LSBDC). To learn more about the DRREE, please visit https://www.entrepreneurecosystem.org/.
Sustainability
The RISE Collaborative is funded through a mix of public and private sources, including grants and corporate sponsors. RISE Collaborative has its roots in the GO Virginia Region 3 Entrepreneurship & Innovation Investment Strategy which was developed over a 12-month-period from July 2019 through July 2020 and finalized in October 2020. RISE Collaborative was established in April 2021 by the SOVA Innovation Hub in partnership with Longwood University with a 24-month grant from GO Virginia Region 3.
Our regional scaling strategy includes offering a blend of in-person and online content, where in-person events are hosted at multiple locations across the region, and live virtual events form the foundation of an evergreen content library. We also offer train-the-trainer opportunities, to enhance the capacity of resource providers and educators to teach entrepreneurship and innovation mindset and skills and customize content for local audiences. If you are interested in partnering with us to develop a new program or scale an existing program, please contact us.
History
The partnerships that led to RISE Collaborative began several years ago, in 2019. GO Virginia Region 3 contracted with MBC and Longwood University to facilitate the development of a regional entrepreneurship and innovation strategy to guide the Region 3 Council on evaluation of funding opportunities related to these topics. The strategy was adopted by the Region 3 Council in October 2020. Meanwhile, in January 2020, MBC and Microsoft created the SOVA Innovation Hub, a non-profit dedicated to transforming the regional economy through digital skills and entrepreneurship. The SOVA Innovation Hub and Longwood then partnered to propose a pilot project to begin implementation of the strategy. This pilot project and related efforts to support entrepreneurship ecosystem development is now branded as RISE Collaborative.