Changing mindsets to give people with criminal histories their best shot at a second chance
Defy Venture
Project description
Andrew Glazier, President and CEO of Defy Ventures, shares:
Defy Ventures is a national non-profit with a vision to cut recidivism in half by leveraging entrepreneurship to increase economic opportunity and transform lives. Defy's programs are helping currently and formerly incarcerated people across the country defy the odds by providing pathways to employment, entrepreneurship, and a successful re-entry.
Website: defyventures.org
Demeter's contribution
Demeter foundation supported the launch of Defy Ventures with seed capital that allowed some of the formerly incarcerated entrepreneurs who completed the Defy programs to launch their own ventures.
Additional information
Defy now supports currently and formerly incarcerated people in defying the odds across seven states and 16 prisons throughout the United States, with more chapters in development. Together with the thousands of business executives and leaders in our network, we are helping to shift the conversation and landscape of opportunity for people with criminal histories.
SDG Goals
Quality education
Decent work and Economic growth
Reduce inequalities
Giovanni Lizarragae
Giovanni Lizarraga decided to leave his union job where he was being paid $40+ an hour to pursue his entrepreneurial dreams and begin building his business, The Handyman Services. Gio had already generated over $20k in profits a little over six weeks after leaving his job.
“I knew for a while that I wanted to start my own business and Defy helped make that possible. I learned a lot about construction while working for the union, but what I needed was the business knowledge to get my company started. The skills I gained from Defy’s Bootcamp—from management to marketing to keeping the books on track and more—made it possible for me to launch and run my business.”