Press Release

New Partnerships to Benefit Black and African American Entrepreneurs

2 November, 2022

Sacramento, California – Nov. 1, 2022 – Leaders of Wells Fargo, Black Chambers of Commerce
and the Northern California Small Business Development Center (Norcal SBDC) program announce
new partnerships with the Inclusivity Project, an initiative of the Norcal SBDC.
This commitment creates collaborations between like-minded organizations to provide no-cost
mentorship, advising, workshops, and networking opportunities to the Black and African American
small business and entrepreneurial community.

Last week, Wells Fargo announced its commitment to the Inclusivity Project with a $335,000
investment in the initiative. This investment is part of Wells Fargo’s larger goal of broadening
diversity and inclusion in all aspects of its business and part of an intentional focus to expand
access to the resources needed to start and grow Black and African American small businesses.
“Wells Fargo is proud to invest in the Inclusivity Project to shift systemic and institutional barriers to
Black entrepreneurs and small businesses,” said Kären Woodruff, Senior Vice President of
Social Impact at Wells Fargo. “Our support will strengthen the capacity for Black Chambers and
Small Business Development Centers across Northern California to create innovative collaborations, pathways, and tools to enhance economic mobility and small business development.”


The Inclusivity Project was launched in February 2021, as a response to the devastating impact
COVID-19 had on Black and African American businesses. To date, over 2,000 business owners
and entrepreneurs have received services of the program.

Participating Chambers of Commerce include: the California Black Chamber, Sacramento Black
Chamber, Solano Black Chamber, Silicon Valley Black Chamber, Oakland African American Chamber, San Francisco African American Chamber, San Joaquin African American Chamber, North Bay
Black Chamber, and CoBiz of Richmond.

Participating Small Business Development Centers include: San Mateo SBDC, Sacramento Valley
SBDC, Solano-Napa SBDC, Access SBDC (in San Jose), East Bay SBDC, San Francisco SBDC,
San Joaquin SBDC, Sonoma SBDC and Marin SBDC.

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For more information about the Inclusivity Project, or to sign up for services, please visit:
www.theinclusivityproject.com.

Contact: Scott Rogalski, Associate Director, Strategic Initiatives, Norcal SBDC:
scott@norcalsbdc.org | (916)712-0434