Impact Scholarship ProgramRising Leaders
Your business is one pitch away
We're giving one entrepreneur $50,000 to start their business — and everything they need to launch it right.
- Applications are open now and close — September 1, 2026
- The winner is announced live at our Launch Gala — Saturday, September 26
Fifty thousand dollars. Yes — fifty thousand.
Most dreams don't die from a lack of passion. They die in the gap between the calling and the plan — between having the idea and having the money, the paperwork, and someone in your corner who has done it before. This scholarship closes that gap for one entrepreneur, completely.
What the $50,000 covers
This isn't a check and a handshake. It's everything required to open the doors and stay open.
Your startup costs
Equipment, inventory, build-out, licensing, insurance — the real costs of opening, funded.
Legal fees
Entity formation, contracts, trademarks — set up properly from day one, not patched later.
Our mentorship program
You're paired with people who have built businesses and will walk the first year with you.
The Impact community
You grow alongside other founders building at the same time — nobody does this alone.
Every tool you need
Business plan, financial model, systems, and templates — the roadmap, ready to use.
A business built to give back
We help you build something that lifts your community, not just your bottom line.
You bring your idea. You pitch it to us. That's it.
No complicated forms, no fees, no gatekeeping. Four steps, from your application to the moment your name is called at our Launch Gala.
Apply
Tell us who you are, what you want to build, and what the $50,000 would make possible — in writing, plus a three minute video. Applications are open now through September 1, 2026.
Finalists chosen
We read every application and choose ten finalists. If you’re one of them we’ll contact you by September 5, using the details you gave us. Everyone who applies hears from us either way.
Pitch in person
The ten finalists pitch their business live and in person in San Diego, between September 8 and 18, to a panel of five judges — founders and business leaders who have built something themselves. Finalists traveling from outside San Diego cover their own travel.
Announced at the gala
The winner is announced live at the Impact Launch Gala on Saturday, September 26, 2026 — on stage, in front of the whole community. One entrepreneur receives the full award and begins the program with our mentors behind them. All ten finalists attend the gala as our guests — your seat is on us.
You already know what it is.
You've felt it for years — in your notes app, on napkins, at 11pm scrolling past someone already living the life you keep picturing. Nobody ever handed you the map.
This scholarship is for you if:
- You have a named business and an idea you believe in, and haven't been able to fund it
- You're ready to actually launch — not someday, this year
- You want to build something that gives back to your community, not just to you
- You're willing to be coached, and to show up for the people coming behind you
Notice what we're not asking for
We're not asking for a perfect deck, a finished product, or a track record. We're asking what you'd build and who it would serve. Philanthropy is one of our core values — it isn't what you do once you've made it, it's built into how you start.
Who can apply, and how the money works
No surprises later. Read this before you spend 45 minutes on the application.
Who can apply
- Entrepreneurs anywhere in the United States
- You must be 18 or older and legally able to work in the US
- You have a named business — already operating, or ready to launch
- You can submit a three minute video with your application
- You can pitch in person in San Diego between September 8 and 18 if you're chosen as a finalist
- Employees, board members and judges of Impact, and their immediate families, are not eligible
Finalists traveling from outside San Diego cover their own travel. Your seat at the gala is on us.
How the $50,000 works
- The award goes to the business, not to you personally
- You'll need a business entity — we'll help you form one if you don't have it yet, and that's covered under legal fees
- How and when the money reaches the business is agreed with the winner before anything is spent
- You'll account to Impact for every dollar, and meet an Impact mentor monthly for the first year
Tax: this award may be taxable and Impact may be required to issue a 1099. We can't give tax advice — please speak to a tax professional about your situation before you apply.
One winner is chosen. If you're not selected, we'll tell you — and you're welcome at our workshops and community either way.
Questions before you start? info@we-impact.com or (619) 541-2454
Ready? Let's hear it.
Applications are open now through September 1, 2026. Finalists are chosen by September 5 and pitch in person September 8–18. The winner is announced live at our Launch Gala on Saturday, September 26.
The application opens right here on the page and it asks a lot of you. Set aside 30–45 minutes and answer it properly — your progress saves as you go, so you can stop and come back.
- Who you are, and your business name
- The business — what it is, who buys it, who else does it, what you'll charge and what it costs you
- Where you are today, and what you've already built with little or no money
- A real line-by-line breakdown of how you'd spend the $50,000
- Your break-even math, and how the business sustains itself after the award
- Licenses and permits you need
- Your biggest obstacle — and what happens if you don't win
- A three minute video — you, on camera, telling us what you'd build
- How the business gives back, and why this one is yours to build
You'll also confirm that you'll meet with an Impact mentor monthly and account for how the funds are spent. This award was funded by people who gave — we steward it carefully.
Questions first? info@we-impact.com or (619) 541-2454
This award exists because people gave.
Every dollar behind this scholarship came from someone who decided a stranger's calling was worth funding. If you want the next one to be bigger, you can make that happen.
Tax-deductible giving
Impact is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, so your gift to the scholarship fund may be tax-deductible as a charitable contribution. You'll receive an official receipt for your records. Consult your tax advisor about your eligibility.
This is one of three.
The Rising Leaders Scholarship is the flagship of the Impact Scholarship Program — but it isn't the only way in. There are two more, for founders at different points in the story.
Roadmap Scholarship
A full year inside Impact, given to a founder who needs the map: a year of membership, a seat in a cohort, six coaching sessions, a dedicated mentor and the complete resource library.
See the Roadmap ScholarshipFirst Step Scholarship
A $5,000 scholarship for founders at the very beginning, granted quarterly. In development — we'll announce a cycle once the funding for it is committed.
Read about First Step