This spotlight is part of the “PLACE Builders mentors” series. More information about the PLACE (Pava LaPere Award for Cultivating Ecosystems) Builders fellowship can be found here.
Tasha Sams
Senior Manager of Education, Main Street America
PLACE Builders mentor Tasha Sams is the Senior Manager of Education at Main Street America, an organization working to strengthen and reenergize downtowns and neighborhood commercial districts across the nation.
Matched Fellow: Paco Ramos-Meyer, Mideast region
"Dreaming and building together is critical to a community-driven entrepreneurial ecosystem."
Tasha Sams
Driven by a belief in the importance of community and sharing knowledge freely to build an equitable entrepreneurial future, PLACE Builders mentor Tasha Sams was matched with Paco Ramos-Meyer. Their pairing was a perfect match, given their shared backgrounds in education and commitment to community development. Tasha was impressed by Paco's dedication to his project, which aims to create an intergenerational business pipeline. Tasha shared, “I truly believe that the project he's working on could not only break down barriers to business for small business owners and aspiring high school students, but could create a inter-and multi generational business pipeline.” Tasha found it deeply fulfilling to see her advice reflected in Paco’s final presentation and has encouraged him to present his project at the upcoming 2025 Main Street Conference in Philadelphia.
Meet the other PLACE Builders mentors:
Inspired by the legacy of Pava LaPere, forever Chief Ecosystem Officer and Co-Founder of EcoMap Technologies, as a tribute to her legacy of fighting for equal access to opportunity, the PLACE (Pava LaPere Award for Cultivating Ecosystems) Builders fellowship aims to catalyze more equitable entrepreneurial ecosystems by providing intensive training, peer support, and community pilots to eight selected fellows.