The Enterprise Center CDC

 The Enterprise Center Community Development Corporation (TEC-CDC) is a neighborhood-based nonprofit organization in West Philadelphia. Founded in 2001 by The Enterprise Center -- a respected minority business accelerator -- TEC-CDC extends The Enterprise Center’s focus on minority entrepreneurship and wealth creation through strategic investments, programs, and initiatives in  West Philadelphia. TEC-CDC is part of The Enterprise Center network of organizations.
TEC-CDC’s multi-faceted approach focuses on the themes of employment, education, and engagement. Our programs are diverse, including a broad-based neighborhood planning effort; initiatives to engage community resources in local schools; a Street Team of Walnut Hill residents who go door-to-door to build a dynamic communication network; and large-scale physical development projects to rebuild blighted infrastructure, create jobs, and revive the community.
 
The Enterprise Center CDC is building community partnerships in an effort to improve the quality of public education at 15 schools in West Philadelphia area. TEC-CDC is  building bridges between community organizations, residents and schools in order to broaden the definition of “school stakeholder”. At TEC-CDC, we view every member of a community as a stakeholder.
The West Philadelphia Education Initiative includes five core goals, which were developed by school administrators and local CDCs. The goals are:
1)  Students will see the relevance of education to their  employment prospects;
2) Students will learn how to become change agents in real-world learning situations;
3) Schools will be centers for the delivery of community development services and education;
4) Parents and community members will be actively engaged partners in their schools and hold schools accountable for results; and
5) Schools and CDCs will maintain an open dialogue about how they can work together to achieve both community development outcomes and educational outcomes.