Shirin has been a tech and marketing entrepreneur for over 20 years, a published author, and a talk show host.

In 2019, shirin opened the first business Accelerator in Long Beach, CA to support minority and women-owned businesses.  The Business Accelerator was in collaboration with the City of Long Beach, Cal State Long Beach Institute of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, supported by Living Cities Foundation and Citi Bank Foundation.

Shirin is also a stanch advocate for Cannabis Equity in the City of Long Beach. She has advocated has since 2017 pushing forward policy forward since 2017., to ensure that those who have been affected by the War on Drugs are included in the Economic Benefits of the Cannabis Industry.

Steve focuses on workforce development and facilitating relationships with unions and workforce agencies to help provide living wage job opportunities for our clients.

Bio goes here

Karen is our Special needs coordinator to ensure the community we serve is served in the most equitable way possible.  She ensures we meet our clients where they are, who attend our workshops and training.

Dr. Wade Martin is a Professor of Economics and Director of the Institute for Innovation & Entrepreneurship at California State University, Long Beach. He works primarily in the area of risk analysis related to business development and sustainability for local economic development. He has worked on research and development projects for Downtown Long Beach Alliance, CalRECYLES, the World Bank, U.S. Agency for International Development, the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, the USDA Forest Service, the US Environmental Protection Agency, the Government of Indonesia and has been a visiting scholar at Harvard Institute for International Development. Dr. Martin has published in numerous academic journals, edited three books and been a commentator on Market Place on NPR as well as for numerous newspapers. He has served as editor-in-chief of the academic journal Contemporary Economic Policy.