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Social Innovation Accelerator

The Social Innovation Accelerator, in collaboration with Accenture, invests human, social and financial capital in experimentation-, growth- and mature-stage organizations in the social innovation sector. Through the program, United Way enables social entrepreneurs to build capacity, scale and expand their ventures in order to drive impact in education, income and health in North Texas.

At United Way of Metropolitan Dallas, we recognize that getting a new social venture off the ground can be incredibly challenging. The Social Innovation Accelerator is just one of the ways we support social innovators, enabling new or existing nonprofit and for-profit organizations to access the resources and connections they need to scale their ventures and achieve success.

Results & Impact

View Our Impact Across All Programs

  • 345,500+

    neighbors
    served by Accelerator fellows since 2013

  • $520,000

    in seed funding
    invested through the Accelerator and The Pitch annually

  • 1,500

    hours
    of mentoring and coaching provided to Accelerator fellows each year

    345,500+

    neighbors
    served by Accelerator fellows since 2013

    $520,000

    in seed funding
    invested through the Accelerator and The Pitch annually

    1,500

    hours
    of mentoring and coaching provided to Accelerator fellows each year

    Our Approach

    Since 2013, this innovative program has enabled us to partner with local social entrepreneurs who are meeting unmet needs in the areas of education, income and health in our community. We identify innovative ideas that are poised to improve North Texas, and then we provide support in three key areas:

    Financial Capital

    Seed funding, which is linked to the completion of program milestones, ensures each organization can quickly grow its impact.

    Human Capital

    Expert instruction and personalized mentoring from local business experts empowers fellows to refine their business plans and create a roadmap for growth.

    Social Capital

    Access to United Way’s community connections and credibility allows fellows to increase their visibility and benefit from previously untapped resources.

    Let’s Connect

    The application for the 2024 cohort has closed.

    Interested in learning more about our social innovation programs? Send us your contact information and we’ll be in touch.

    Accelerator Alumni

    2022

    • AES Literacy Institute
    • Ark of Hope
    • BT Foundry
    • Combined Arms
    • Este2m Builders
    • FEED Oak Cliff
    • The Artist Outreach
    • Veritas Impact
    • Wesley Rankin Community Center
    • Yumlish

    2021

    • Agape Resource & Assistance Center
    • Connected Mind
    • Cornbread Hustle
    • Dwell with Dignity
    • Kimiya International Fight Club
    • The Concilio
    • The Welman Project
    • To Be Like Me
    • Trusted World

    2020

    • Better Block Foundation
    • Carson’s Village
    • EdCor Health
    • Habitat for Humanity of Collin County
    • Heart House
    • Kids-U
    • Southern Dallas Link
    • The Home Visit Partnerships
    • The Walls Project
    • Trey Athletes

    2018

    • Bold Idea
    • Hand to Hold
    • JUST Community
    • My Possibilities
    • Ntarupt (Healthy Futures of Texas)
    • POETIC
    • Readers 2 Leaders
    • Rosa es Rojo
    • Student Success Agency
    • Tacky Box LLC
    • Yoga N Da Hood

    2017

    • Beacon Hill Preparatory Institute
    • Bonton Farms
    • Center for Employment Opportunities
    • Education Opens Doors
    • First3Years
    • Project Phoenix
    • ScholarShot
    • Skratch
    • Youth With Faces

    2016

    • Adaptive Training Foundation
    • Akola Project
    • Dallas Teacher Residency
    • Equal Heart
    • FARM
    • Principal Impact Collaborative
    • Society of St. Vincent de Paul

    2015

    • SafeNight
    • 2nd Saturday
    • PCCI
    • Per Scholas
    • Upswing

    2014

    • LiftFund
    • Café Momentum
    • Spark 101

    Our Mentors

    • Shawn Leamon
      Social Innovation Lab Committee Chair
    • Jim Adams
      Advisor to Family Offices and Families
    • Tolu Akinjayeju
      Santander
    • George Baker
      ParkHub  
    • Laura Baldwin
      Golden Seeds
    • Michelle Bogan
      Equity at Work  
    • Kristina Carbonneau
      Santander Consumer USA  
    • Lane Conner
      Fuzse  
    • Steven Dennis
      SageBerry Consulting, Forbes  
    • Jamika Doakes
      AT&T 
    • Jason Dyke
      Carson’s Village  
    • Gwen Echols
      Southwest Angel Investing Network, KERA  
    • Donna Epps
      Texas Pacific Land Trust  
    • David Evans
      Sentiero Ventures, Geode Software 
    • David Ezell
      Yahoo!
    • Renee George
      Board Member/ Community Volunteer
    • Rick Jackson
      ForgeRock, Bizaccelerator  
    • Kyle Kraft
      Accenture  
    • Bob Kraut
      EDO, YEXT, Tiff’s Treats  
    • Michael Martin
      MM Solar Advisory 
    • Ty McAden
      Accenture  
    • Murali Prabhakaran
      Accenture  
    • Cory Ritthaler
      Deloitte
    • Scott Schoenvogel
      ACAP Health
    • Van Sheets
      Board Member/ Advisor
    • William Smith
      PNC Bank
    • Michael Thomas
      My Possibilities 
    • Nick Vilmain
      Santander
    • Amber Wagenknecht
      Deloitte
    • John Watson
      BearCom (retired)  
    • Shan Zaidi
      VF Partners 

    The Pitch

    Each year, the Social Innovation Accelerator program culminates in The Pitch, our live competition where social entrepreneurs vie for game-changing funding in front of a panel of judges and a live audience.
    Learn More

    The Social Innovation Accelerator is supported by:

    • Accenture    •  
    • AT&T   •  
    • PNC   •  
    • Santander   •  
    • The Eugene McDermott Foundation   •  
    • The Kleinert Family   •  
    • The Moozie Family Foundation   •  
    • Hoglund Foundation   •  
    • Toyota Motor North America    •  
    • Sara and Gary Ahr   •  
    • Capital One Bank   •  
    • Carol and Kevin March

    Invest in 
    Lasting Change

    Together, we can improve access to education, income and health so all North Texans can thrive.

    Explore Our Other Programs

    Social innovation is at the heart of the work we do 365 days a year. Our programs provide financial, human and social capital to help identify, develop and grow social ventures that are implementing new and innovative solutions to the most urgent challenges facing North Texas in education, income and health.