TROY ? The Community Foundation for Southeastern Michigan has renewed a $126,000 grant used to fund the Walsh College Adams Entrepreneurial Fellowship, which develops the entrepreneurial skills of two promising Walsh College business students or alumni by matching them with two local entrepreneurs for one year.
Waterford, Michigan, resident Monica Smith, a Walsh College master?s degree student, was selected as the second Adams Fellow. She will spend a year learning about the world of mergers, acquisitions, and raising capital under the mentorship of Tony Zambelli, managing director of Seneca Partners in Birmingham, Michigan.
Alex Schwallbach, the first Adams Fellow, this month concludes his year with Advanced Insurance of Harper Woods, Michigan, where he was mentored by the firm?s president, Mark Van Den Branden, a Walsh College alumnus.
?Congratulations to Monica Smith for exemplifying the spirit of the Adams Entrepreneurial Fellowship, and our gratitude to Tony Zambelli and Seneca Partners for embracing and supporting it,? said Walsh College President Keith Pretty. ?Our founder, Mervyn B. Walsh, embraced the entrepreneurial spirit of Detroit when he established his School of Accountancy in 1922. We?re honored to continue the legacies of both Mr. Walsh and Mr. and Mrs. Adams, and we?re extremely grateful to The Community Foundation and the Ann and Carman Adams Fund for continued support.?
The Ann and Carman Adams Fund is a permanent endowment fund of The Community Foundation established through the estate of M. Ann Adams to recognize the business success of her late husband. The fund makes grants to nonprofit organizations that stimulate entrepreneurial development, especially those that encourage talented young adults who are poised to start or build private businesses in the metropolitan Detroit area.
The Community Foundation for Southeastern Michigan, founded in 1984, is a permanent community endowment built by gifts from hundreds of individuals and organizations committed to the future of southeast Michigan. The Foundation works to improve the region?s quality of life by supporting a wide variety of activities benefiting education, arts and culture, health, human services, community development and civic affairs. The Foundation has assets of more than $370 million and, since its inception, has distributed more than $170 million through nearly 20,000 grants to nonprofit organizations throughout Wayne, Oakland, Macomb, Monroe, Washtenaw, St. Clair, and Livingston counties.
Entrepreneurs are currently being interviewed to participate in the Walsh College Adams Entrepreneurial Fellowship. Interested business owners can call (248) 823-1392 for applications.
Walsh College alumni and students are eligible to apply for the fellowships, and are selected by a panel that includes the mentors. . The application deadline is 5 p.m. on September 28, 2005. Further information can also be obtained by calling (248) 823-1392.
Details and the Application are available at WalshCollege.Edu
