Olive-Harvey College Wins NACCE Grant to Back Student Entrepreneurs

Olive-Harvey College has received a grant from the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE) to support future entrepreneurs, City Colleges of Chicago announced.

The award directs new money toward the college's work with students who want to start businesses. Olive-Harvey, one of the seven colleges in the City Colleges of Chicago system, serves students on the city's Far South Side. The grant links the campus to NACCE, the leading national organization focused on entrepreneurship education at community colleges.

City Colleges of Chicago confirmed the award in its announcement of the grant. The organization behind the funding, NACCE, works with community colleges across the country to build entrepreneurship programming and connect campuses with resources for aspiring business owners.

What does the grant fund?

The grant supports future entrepreneurs at Olive-Harvey College, according to City Colleges of Chicago. The award fits the system's broader effort to connect classroom learning with career pathways, including business ownership.

For students, the practical stakes are simple: funding of this kind typically pays for training, mentoring and program support that helps first-time founders move from idea to launch. City Colleges of Chicago has positioned its campuses as engines of economic mobility, and entrepreneurship support extends that mission beyond wage employment.

Why does it matter?

Community colleges train a large share of first-generation and working students. Grants like this one push resources to those students rather than to elite business schools. The award also signals that national groups such as NACCE see City Colleges of Chicago as a partner worth funding.

The college has not yet detailed the grant amount or the specific programs it will fund. Students and local business owners can expect further announcements as the funding moves into entrepreneurship programming at the campus.