UPDATE 2/20: Genesys Works was selected as the people's choice winner of the competition and will receive an additional $125,000 in funding.
Google announced during the Timberwolves game on Wednesday night that it had selected five Minnesota nonprofits to receive funds as part of its Impact Challenge.
The five winners were selected by a panel of local judges that includes Shawntera Hardy, co-founder of Civic Eagle; Eric Dayton, CEO of Askov Finlayson; and Gersson Rosas, the Timberwolves' president of basketball operations.
Each of the organizations will receive $175,000 to support projects aimed at creating economic opportunity in their communities.
In the final stage of the competition, Google is inviting Minnesotans to select a people's choice winner, which will receive an additional $125,000. Voting began during the Timberwolves game last night and will continue through Feb. 19.
Here are the five companies in the running, with descriptions provided by Google:
- First Children's Finance: Aims to increase the supply of child care in rural Minnesota. The Minneapolis-based company is using an economic development perspective to leverage local resources, investments and public-private partnerships to increase the number of childcare slots available to families.
- Genesys Works Twin Cities: Hopes to break the cycle of poverty in underserved communities while reducing disparities in STEM careers through long-term programming that begins in high school and provides opportunities for college work experiences.
- Hmong American Farmers Association: Launching a community-supported agriculture box that will provide a weekly supply of fresh, locally grown food to low-income, food-insecure families in the Twin Cities.
- Tech Dump: Working with adults who are facing barriers to employment by training and employing them in electronics recycling and refurbishing. St. Paul-based Tech Dump helps employees develop marketable, transferable skills that can lead to multiple career pathways and living-wage employment.
- The BrandLab: Helps increase and accelerate opportunities for young people from communities of color to succeed in creative careers.
"We were blown away with the incredibly diverse and innovative proposals from the state's nonprofit organizations that came pouring in after we launched the Impact Challenge," Dan Harbeke, Google's head of public policy and external affairs, said in a statement. "Our local judges helped select five impressive winners, and we're excited to see which deserving organization Minnesotans select as their 'People's Choice' winner."
When the challenge concludes, Google will have contributed $1 million to Minnesota nonprofits.
