Ascend Twin Cities seeks to match anchor companies with underrepresented suppliers. Scalable businesses participate in an 18-week curriculum developed by the Carlson School of Management to develop a growth strategy and build the capabilities to support their growth. Contract ready businesses connect with anchor companies seeking contracted work while accessing growth capital.

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Using a research-driven approach to address the education, funding and access gaps, universities and entrepreneurial support organizations are building solutions to accelerate the growth of inner-city businesses.

This site shares content and resources for the management course developed specifically for the 2025 cohort of participants in the Ascend Twin Cities program.

Ascend Twin Cities is one of more than a dozen local partnerships arising from the national Ascend network, working to accelerate the growth of underrepresented businesses.

The Holmes Center is the hub of entrepreneurship and innovation at the University of Minnesota that inspires, educates and connects the next generation of Minnesota's entrepreneurs. We mobilize the community and provide support for emerging entrepreneurs, both within and outside the University, through experiential courses and engaging outreach programs.

Meda provides business consulting, access to capital, and market opportunities for minority entrepreneurs. Meda also operates a business development center under cooperative agreement with the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) of the U.S. Department of Commerce. Since 1971, Meda has helped more than 20,000 entrepreneurs of color and assisted in the start-up of more than 550 businesses.

JPMorgan Chase is a global leader in financial services, offering solutions to the world's most important corporations, governments and institutions in more than 100 countries. In 2020, JPMorgan Chase committed to deploying $30 billion in to help close the racial wealth gap and advance economic inclusion. In addition to developing the Ascend program, it leads extensive volunteer service activities for employees in its communities.