Network Kansas

What Network Kansas does

Network Kansas (legally Kansas Center for Entrepreneurship, Inc.) is a 501(c)(3)-style statewide nonprofit headquartered in Andover, Kansas, founded in 2004 under the Kansas Economic Growth Act and rebranded to its current name in 2006. The organization functions as an umbrella platform connecting a network of 656+ resource partners and 82 eCommunity partnerships (77 of which are rural) with small-business entrepreneurs across all 105 Kansas counties. Its core programmatic offerings include the GrowKS small-business loan program funded under the federal SSBCI 2.0 initiative, the eGrowth Ventures equity investment vehicle, the Impact Investment Center, the Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge, the Destination Business BootCamp, and the Kansas Healthy Food Initiative. The underlying platform is operational rather than technological: Network Kansas originates, structures, and disburses capital through partner-administered pipelines, with statutory and contractual rights (rather than proprietary software) forming its structural advantage.

The business model is grant- and contract-funded rather than fee-for-service. Revenue sources include a $3M Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation grant (2022), SSBCI 2.0 federal contracting for loan-program administration, state appropriations enabled by the Kansas Economic Growth Act, and state tax-credit mechanisms that channel private capital into the eGrowth Ventures and Impact Investment Center funds. Loan principal ($90M cumulative, 1,980 loans) and equity capital ($14.9M deployed across 88 investments) are deployed into the Kansas economy rather than retained as recurring revenue; the organization instead captures program service fees, administrative fees, and grant-funded operating support. Cumulative capital leverage figures of $520M (loans) and $276.1M (equity co-investment) imply a roughly 1:6 to 1:18 leverage ratio against Network Kansas's own capital deployment, and 36,000+ entrepreneurs served through the IIC underscore the program's scale. Customer segments are small businesses, rural entrepreneurs, youth entrepreneurs, and community-based partner organizations, with no single end-customer representing a material share of activity.

Name

Network Kansas

Legal name

Kansas Center for Entrepreneurship, Inc.

Website

https://networkkansas.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2004

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Network Kansas (Kansas Center for Entrepreneurship, Inc.) is a statewide nonprofit founded in 2004 under the Kansas Economic Growth Act that connects 656+ resource partners and 82 rural eCommunities with small-business entrepreneurs across all 105 Kansas counties, deploying loans, equity investments, and entrepreneurship programs funded by federal, state, and philanthropic capital.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Andover

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Grant Funding: Network Kansas operates primarily through grant funding from organizations like the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation ($3M grant in 2022) to develop inclusive entrepreneurial ecosystems across Kansas.
2. Loan & Equity Programs: Network Kansas administers loan and equity investment programs including GrowKS loans, eCommunity gap financing, Kansas Community Investment Fund (KCIF), and equity investments. They mobilize capital to help entrepreneurs start and grow businesses.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Network Kansas is a statewide nonprofit network that administers loan and equity programs, technical assistance, and community-based entrepreneurial ecosystem support to help Kansas entrepreneurs start and grow small businesses. It connects entrepreneurs to capital, training, and a network of 656+ resource partners and 82 eCommunity partnerships across all 105 Kansas counties.

Product overview

Network Kansas is a statewide network of non-profit business-building resources that operates as a comprehensive entrepreneurship support ecosystem rather than a single product. The organization offers a portfolio of interconnected programs including the eCommunity Partnership (which provides community-level entrepreneurial ecosystem development with gap financing), eGrowth Ventures (equity investments), GrowKS (the primary loan program), and the Impact Investment Center (which serves as the central hub connecting entrepreneurs to resources). Additional offerings include ePrograms for youth entrepreneurship competitions, Networked for convenings and events, Technical Assistance, and specialized initiatives like the Kansas Healthy Food Initiative. The portfolio is organized around helping entrepreneurs access capital (through loans and equity), education, and connections throughout the business lifecycle.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• eCommunity Partnership: A program dedicated to fostering vibrant entrepreneurial ecosystems throughout Kansas by working hand-in-hand with local communities to provide essential tools, expertise, education, and financial resources.
• eGrowth Ventures
• ePrograms
• GrowKS
• Impact Investment Center (IIC)
• Networked

Products and services

• eCommunity Partnership Flagship initiative that brings together community leaders, financial institutions, economic development organizations, and entrepreneurs to build stronger local entrepreneurial ecosystems with a locally controlled gap financing loan fund, entrepreneur educational programs, and technical assistance.
• eGrowth Ventures

Quantifiable outcome

• Every $1.00 loaned generates $7.89 in wages, $3.73 in state tax revenue, and $185.79 total gross output
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Destination Business BootCamp (Jon Schallert)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 19 May 2026Network Kansas sponsors Junction City/Geary County businesses to attend the Destination Business BootCamp, a nationally recognized intensive training program to help businesses transform into consumer destinations.
• Debra Teufel (Hutchinson Chamber of Commerce)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 April 2026New board member joining Network Kansas Board of Directors; President & CEO of Hutchinson/Reno County Chamber of Commerce, overseeing the Reno County eCommunity host organization (Startup Hutch).
• Doug Williams (Grow Hays)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 April 2026New board member joining Network Kansas Board of Directors; Executive Director of Grow Hays, the economic development organization for Ellis County, leading the Ellis County eCommunity which has facilitated 65+ loans totaling $2.7M.
• Dan Lara (Kansas Small Business Development Center)minorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 April 2026New board member joining Network Kansas Board of Directors; State Director of Kansas SBDC which operates statewide through Fort Hays State University.
• Omni Circle GroupcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 February 2026Topeka-based Omni Circle Group, host organization for Shawnee Startups eCommunity, is expanding its Ignite program to Douglas County through partnership with the Douglas County eCommunity. This represents the first time two Network Kansas eCommunity partners have teamed up to expand resources for Kansas entrepreneurs.
• Douglas County eCommunitycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 February 2026Douglas County eCommunity partnered with Omni Circle Group to expand access to the Ignite: New Venture Discovery program for Lawrence and Douglas County entrepreneurs.
• Dwayne Peaslee Technical Training CenterminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 February 2026Peaslee Tech hosts Ignite program sessions for the Omni Circle expansion into Lawrence/Douglas County area.
• Kansas State University (K-State) ExtensioncoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 April 2023K-State Extension partners with Network Kansas on the Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge Series and State competition. KSU Extension provides nearly $100,000 annually in program support over a three-year commitment. The partnership supports nearly 1,200 middle and high school students annually.
• Kansas 4-HcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 April 2023Kansas 4-H partners with Network Kansas on the Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge Series, providing youth development programming across all 105 Kansas counties.
• K-State Center for the Advancement of EntrepreneurshipcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 29 April 2023The K-State Center for the Advancement of Entrepreneurship partners with Network Kansas to host the Annual State Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge in Manhattan, Kansas.

Scale indicators13 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Accion: Accion is a national nonprofit CDFI providing small business loans, coaching, and networks to underserved entrepreneurs — directly comparable to Network Kansas's GrowKS loan program, eGrowth Ventures equity, and Impact Investment Center referral model, with similar target customers (aspiring and existing small business owners).
• Colorado Enterprise Fund: Colorado Enterprise Fund is a Colorado-based nonprofit CDFI providing small business loans, capital, and entrepreneur support — a near-perfect structural peer to Network Kansas's state-level CDFI-like operating model with loan programs, equity investments, and community-based entrepreneur support.
• Kiva US: Kiva operates a crowdfunded microloan platform for small businesses in the US — directly comparable to Network Kansas's small business lending model, with similar focus on community-supported capital for entrepreneurs who cannot access traditional bank financing.
• LiftFund: LiftFund is a Texas-based nonprofit CDFI providing small business loans, coaching, and capital to underserved entrepreneurs — directly comparable to Network Kansas's loan deployment (GrowKS), equity investments (eGrowth Ventures), and entrepreneur support ecosystem, operating at similar scale within a single state.

Broad incumbents

• Grameen America: Grameen America is a national nonprofit microfinance organization providing small loans and training to entrepreneurs — comparable to Network Kansas's mission of deploying capital to underserved small businesses, though focused on microloans rather than Kansas-specific community development.
• Pacific Community Ventures: Pacific Community Ventures is a California-based nonprofit providing small business advising, capital, and research to underserved entrepreneurs — comparable to Network Kansas's blended capital-plus-advisory entrepreneur support model, though operating at larger California scale.
• SCORE: SCORE is the nation's largest network of volunteer business mentors, providing free mentoring, workshops, and resources to small business owners — directly comparable to Network Kansas's entrepreneur support, technical assistance, and resource referral mission, though operating nationally and relying on volunteer mentors rather than capital deployment.

Regional players

• Justine Petersen Housing & Reinvestment Corporation: Justine Petersen is a Missouri-based nonprofit CDFI providing small business loans, credit building, and entrepreneur support — comparable to Network Kansas's capital deployment and entrepreneur education model, with similar rural/Midwest small business focus but serving a different state.
• Vermont Community Loan Fund: Vermont Community Loan Fund is a Vermont-based nonprofit CDFI providing small business loans, microenterprise development, and community economic development — comparable to Network Kansas's state-level nonprofit capital deployment and community partnership model, operating in a different New England geography.
• Coastal Enterprises (CEI): CEI is a Maine-based nonprofit CDFI providing capital, advisory, and policy support to small businesses and communities — comparable to Network Kansas's integrated model of loans, equity, technical assistance, and community-based ecosystem development, but operating in a different New England geography.

Market position

Competitive moat6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/networkkansas
• Facebookfacebook.com/networkkansas
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/networkkansas

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles18 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments3 records

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Network Kansas