September 3, 2014 founders

Open Letter: Black Founders is Building in Public

Dear Black Founders Community and Friends,

It is with extreme pleasure that we announce that Black Founders is now officially a nonprofit organization with tax-exempt status under Section 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal Revenue Code.

Obtaining 501(c)3 status is a major milestone for our organization. This new  status means that we will now be able to access financial resources that will allow us to grow and deliver more programs to underrepresented entrepreneurs. Black Founders has been largely financed through events, sponsorships, and sweat…lots and lots of sweat. We have a few key programs that we have wanted to scale but have not had the resources that they require. Repositioning some of these programs under our new 501(c)3 will allow us to have greater reach and impact on our entrepreneur community.

Black Founders has always been inspired by smart people building great things and lately, we’ve found inspiration in Ryan Hoover and the team at Product Hunt. Their commitment to building in public has allowed their startup to get rapid feedback and create a community of users that feel invested in the direction of their product.

We believe that building in public can also be applied to program design. As we continue to build Black Founders, we are committed to transparency and feedback.

As we move into this next stage, we want to make it easier for our friends and supporters to remain involved. We’ll be using the hashtag #BFBuildInPublic as a call for support and feedback on future programs and events.

Look out for the hashtag as we announce new ways for you to get involved. If you have a suggestion for us, please use the hashtag. We’ll be listening.

Thank you all for your continued support. We look forward to working together as we continue our mission — to increase the number of black entrepreneurs in tech.

Our deepest appreciation,

Monique, Nnena, Hadiyah, & Chris

 

Old ways won't open new doors