The Pitch
The Collaborative Community Initiative (CCI) is a New Orleans-based non-profit that has grown out of the work of The Collaborative, “a group of minority businesses and allies who together advance public policies that promote economic parity and inclusion in the City of New Orleans.” The goal of CCI is to “promote economic equity and the building of generational wealth in disenfranchised communities through community-focused data analysis, education, and engagement.”
Michelle Nixon Stanton, Jessica Jenkins, Shana Hartmann
The Entrepreneur
Michelle Nixon Stanton is a founding board member of the Collaborative Community Initiative (CCI). She is also a founding member of the Collaborative, providing administrative leadership as head of the Collaborative Support Team for the past nine years. In addition, Michelle is the director of CUEE, a community lender that supports small and minority businesses in New Orleans with funding and personalized business analysis. She is also a partner in the firm Seventeen18, specializing in organizational consulting for small to medium businesses, start-ups, and non-profits. Michelle is a member of the board of the Louisiana Chamber of Commerce Foundation, a support organization for minority chambers of commerce across the state.
Jessica Jenkins is a founding member of the Collaborative, and the founding board chair of the Collaborative Community Initiative. In addition, she is the owner of Blujay Designs, a graphic design firm in New Orleans, and is part of the Collaborative Support Team, providing logo design, web design, and general communications assistance. Jessica also spent twelve years on the team at CUEE, a community lender, assisting small, minority-owned businesses in New Orleans.
Shana Hartmann is a founding board member of the Collaborative Community Initiative, as well a founding member of the Collaborative. As an independent consultant and now a partner in the firm Seventeen18, she has spend the past dozen years focused on community outreach, communications, and public policy research. She provides the Collaborative and CCI with data research and analysis in the areas of local policy, public contracting, and economic disparity, as well as providing communications and organizational support.