Announcing the FINNOVATION Fellowship 2026
Discovery Module Cohort!
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As the first stage of the FINNOVATION Fellowship, the Discovery Module gives early-stage founders the education, coaching, connections, and community to more clearly define the problem they aim to solve, understand the people most affected, and assess the opportunity surrounding their proposed social enterprise. Fellows build the research, analytical, and strategic foundation needed to determine how their ideas should move forward.
The 2026 Discovery Module fellows are:
- Aster Hinz - Building a full-service auto repair shop centered on respectful, affordable service for BIPOC, women, queer people, and other clients.
- Brettina Christopher - Applying cognitive-neuroscience-informed audience analysis and strategy to mission-driven organizations.
- Caitlin Collins - Helping older adults and family caregivers manage the administrative demands of aging.
- Carmen Lewis - Creating employment, workforce development, and entrepreneurship pathways for people impacted by the criminal legal system.
- Chao Yang - Creating a pathway to publishing for first-generation immigrant, refugee, and BIPOC women.
- Clarinda Solberg - Helping public, nonprofit, healthcare, education, and community partners align evidence and act together on complex local challenges.
- Deborah Van Eendenburg - Developing year-round sports facilities in communities with limited field access.
- Dr. Heather Britt - Creating community-centered spaces for older adults within long-term care and independent living settings.
- Jack Vang - Helping music artists build the skills, networks, and professional support needed to pursue sustainable careers while expanding representation in the industry.
- Jennifer Jimenez-Wheatley - Helping Black, Brown, immigrant, and low-wealth food entrepreneurs turn culinary skill into sustainable business opportunity.
- Jenny Tam - Hosting welcoming, home-like gatherings that connect community participation with local giving.
- Jothsna Harris - Helping people make sense of climate challenges, build confidence discussing climate issues, and identify practical ways to act.
- Laquita Love-Limo - Helping older adults, people with disabilities, caregivers, and people facing housing instability navigate disconnected systems and access needed support.
- Ryan Berg - Creating trauma-informed writing spaces for people navigating difficult experiences and for the professionals who support them.
- Shannon Steven - Turning public art into an accessible, place-based learning experience.
- Suleiman Adan - Creating a proposed reentry initiative that helps mosques and Muslim organizations become stronger partners for people returning home from incarceration.
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Cohort 7 Fellow Devin Boeing, founder and CEO of Cryptic Institute, recently appeared on KARE 11 News to discuss Minnesota’s digital literacy gap. Devin shared how Cryptic Institute is expanding access to emerging technology education through community workshops, cohort-based learning, partnerships, and an upcoming e-learning platform. Watch the KARE 11 interview.
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Special thanks to our fellowship judges!
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The Fellowship is truly Powered by People and we want to give a special thanks to the interviewers who helped choose our final Discovery Module participants. We could not do it without them!
- Alysha Price - Founder & CEO, The Price Dynamic
- Connie Rutledge - Director FINNOVATION Fund
- Elaine Rasmussen - Founder & CEO, ConnectUp! Institute
- Jacquie Berglund - Founder & Board Chair, FINNOVATION Institute
- Dr. Kjrk Reyerson - Co-Founder, Skapa Solutions
- May Lee-Yang - Founder and CEO, Mayhem Games
- Natalia Mercado - Director of Business Services, NDC
- Dr. Ramón Pastrano - CEO & President, Third Sphere, LLC
- Dr. Seth Werner - Sr. Pricing Analyst, Cargill
- Dr. Shelia Sweeney - Founder, Dr. Shelia Sweeney Enterprises
- Sherman Patterson - Former VP, Microgrants
- Stephanie Malon-Rufi - Founder & CEO, Spark Good
Learn more about our judges and all the people who help this program run on our website - https://finnovationinstitute.org/powered-by-people.
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The FINNOVATION Fellowship program is made possible through generous support from the Bush Foundation, whose mission is to invest in great ideas and the people who power them.
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