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NOVEMBER 2025
Newsletter
Insights, Stories, and New Opportunities Shaping Our Work with Partners Nationwide
Entrepreneurs strengthen local communities, create jobs, and bring new ideas to life — and the organizations that support them play an essential role in that progress. Through Prosperity Now’s Growth Business Accelerator (GBA), we strengthen the capacity of community lenders and Entrepreneurial Support Organizations (ESOs) so they can better serve small businesses in their communities. This National Entrepreneurship Month, we’re highlighting the partners and leaders who make it easier for entrepreneurs to start and grow their businesses.
Join us on National Entrepreneurship Day, Tuesday, November 18, at 1 p.m. ET as we share findings from the GBA pilot and discuss how partners are strengthening their support for local businesses.
The GBA brings community lenders and business support organizations together to learn from each other, share practical solutions, and strengthen the support system behind local businesses. This session will highlight early lessons from the pilot, partners’ stories, and opportunities to improve how local organizations help small businesses start, grow, and succeed.
At the 2025 Prosperity Summit, we heard powerful stories from community leaders driving change, including Mike Butler, Executive Director of The Fountain Fund. Through his work, Mike supports people affected by incarceration as they regain financial stability for their families. His story shows what is possible when community organizations have the tools and support they need to move people forward.
Your experiences help shape the solutions we build together. This National Entrepreneurship Month, we want to hear from you.
- Record a short video (30–60 seconds) answering: “What keeps you motivated, and how does your entrepreneurial journey help your community?”
- Post using #StoriesOfProsperity and #NationalEntrepreneurshipMonth.
- Tag @ProsperityNow on social media so we can feature your story.
- Encourage others to share their experiences.
What We Built Together at the 2025 Prosperity Summit
Last month, Prosperity Now brought together hundreds of practitioners, community partners, and public sector leaders to Washington, D.C. for the 2025 Prosperity Summit to share solutions to some of our nation’s most pressing economic challenges. This Summit’s theme was “Together We Thrive,” and featured inspiring plenaries, hands-on workshops, and the inaugural Prosperity Now Awards Gala, an evening of storytelling that celebrated our shared commitment to building a future where everyone can prosper.
As we continue this work beyond the Summit, we invite you to stay connected and help turn these ideas into action.
Prosperity Now recently welcomed Sarah Bacerra as our Interim Chief Program Officer. Sarah’s approach to leading this work is shaped by curiosity, connection, and a deep respect for lived expertise. “Community partners carry the insight and experience that directly inform our work,” she shared. “My role is to help create the conditions where their voices shape what comes next.”
Sarah sees a major opportunity to strengthen how Prosperity Now’s networks connect by aligning field insights, technical assistance, and collaboration in ways that feel practical and energizing. She’s especially interested in how engagement can feel more coordinated for practitioners across the country, giving them clearer pathways to share knowledge and tap into support when they need it.
As we move into the next phase of growth, Sarah is eager to hear where partners see new needs emerging, including ideas related to technology and data, accessible program design, workforce and entrepreneurship pathways, and other community-driven solutions gaining momentum. “I hope practitioners feel a sense of connection and confidence,” she said. “I want them to know they’re part of a wider community they can turn to for ideas, peer support, and tools they can use right away.”
Her leadership will play a key role in strengthening Prosperity Now’s national networks and supporting our partners as we build research, tools, and solutions that help organizations better serve the communities they work with every day.
ICYMI
Prosperity Now Announces Intent to Acquire Change Machine
Prosperity Now announced its intent to acquire Change Machine, a leading financial coaching platform that empowers practitioners with tech-enabled tools and data insights. This partnership strengthens our capacity to support community organizations and financial coaches nationwide.
Prosperity Now Comments on FHFA Enterprise Housing Goals Proposed Rule
Last month, the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) released updated benchmarks for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to guide how they support mortgage lending for working families. In our public comment letter, Prosperity Now encouraged FHFA to maintain clear, data-driven benchmarks that strengthen transparency and accountability
Join Us in Building a More Prosperous Future
Every story of progress, from stronger financial coaching to better support for small businesses, starts with people who believe in possibility. Your support helps advance this work in communities across the country.
