FINNOVATION INSTITUTE WELCOMES 16 SOCIAL ENTREPRENEURS TO EIGHTH FELLOWSHIP COHORT
Discovery Module helps emerging founders examine problems, test assumptions, and strengthen early-stage social enterprise ideas
ST. PAUL, Minn., Aug. 11, 2026 – FINNOVATION Institute has announced the 16 social entrepreneurs selected for the 2026 Discovery Module of the FINNOVATION Fellowship. The eighth cohort is tackling challenges that touch nearly every part of community life, including equitable access to entrepreneurship, aging and caregiving, climate action, reentry, creative careers, public health, and inclusive economic opportunity.
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.
“These founders are not approaching problems from a distance. They understand them through lived experience, professional expertise, and deep community connection,” said Dr. La Juana Whitmore, Executive Director of FINNOVATION Institute. “Discovery is not about pretending they should already have every answer. It is about giving them the structure, tools, and community to ask better questions, test their assumptions, and let evidence shape what comes next.”
Throughout the module, fellows will develop their vision, mission, and values; work through the Impact Business Model Canvas; define customers; analyze industries, competitors, and market size; conduct primary research; examine root causes and systems; build networks and strategic partnerships; and use trend analysis and strategic foresight to strengthen their value propositions. The module concludes with a presentation to an outside audience that brings their learning and evidence together.
The cohort also represents FINNOVATION’s broader commitment to building a long-term pipeline for social entrepreneurs. FINNOVATION strengthens founders directly, then multiplies impact through the ventures they build and the communities and systems those ventures reach.
“This is what it means to be an impact multiplier,” Whitmore said. “When we equip one founder to build a sustainable venture, the value does not stop with that entrepreneur. It travels through every customer served, job created, barrier removed, and community strengthened. We are not simply supporting 16 people. We are strengthening 16 ventures with the potential to carry change much farther than any one program can.”
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.
FINNOVATION Institute programs like the FINNOVATION Fellowship Program are made possible through the generous support of the Bush Foundation and donors like you.
More information about the FINNOVATION Fellowship is available at https://finnovationinstitute.org.
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About FINNOVATION Institute
FINNOVATION Institute is an inclusive community inspiring social change, growth, innovation, and experimentation. FINNOVATION Institute empowers social entrepreneurs to make a positive change in the world through the power of business. For more information, visit https://finnovationinstitute.org.