A Year of New Directions

Dear Friends,

As we reflect on this past year, we find ourselves moving in new directions and charting new courses to fulfill our mission of promoting business and community prosperity while preserving our wonderful quality of life across Southeastern Pennsylvania. That doesn’t mean we’ve stopped doing all the great work that we’ve become known for—helping borrowers navigate complicated loan processes; assisting companies in finding the right home to locate their business; convening partners to address workforce issues across a variety of sectors; and providing an ecosystem of support for entrepreneurs. Those services will always be the pillars of who we are. The “new directions” we have pursued are in the spirit of serving more people, more businesses, and more communities.

You’ll see that our annual report for 2022-2023 is organized by our core service areas—Location Services, Financing Solutions, Workforce Development, and Innovation & Entrepreneurship—but also offers highlights that underscore our theme: A Year of New Directions.

• The Pennsylvania Catalyst Loan Fund was launched to serve eight counties across Southeastern and Southcentral Pennsylvania. This program offers small balance loans to nontraditional borrowers who otherwise may not have access to loan funds.
• We advanced our New Business Champions pilot to be a fully funded program that provides technical business assistance to woman and minority entrepreneurs.
• We secured funding for Project RECONNECT, a new program that provides funding and other support to individuals who have dislocated from the postsecondary education system but only need a few credits to complete their degree or certificate.
• Our Girls Exploring Tomorrow’s Technology (GETT) program moved to a new home at the Greater Philadelphia Expo Center in Oaks in order to accommodate more attendees and more elaborate expo offerings.
• We hired a new leadership team to run the Ideas x Innovation Network (i2n) whose goal is to not only elevate brand awareness, but also have an increased impact across all of Southeastern Pennsylvania.
• We’ve put in place a great team to lead AgConnect whose goals include increasing the awareness of the sheer number of jobs that fall under the umbrella of agriculture, offering opportunities for youth career exploration, and promoting the purchase of local food.
• We’ve made social media a priority—expanding our ability to connect and engage with our investors and partners and to tell the stories of the individuals and businesses we help.

We thank you for your interest in CCEDC and hope you’ll enjoy some of the stories contained in this review. They inspire us every day and provide the fuel that will surely send us in more new directions in 2024!

Sincerely,