• ANNUAL REPORT
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    JOSEPH BUSINESS SCHOOL
    OUR STORY OF TRANSFORMATION
    MADE A DIFFERENCE IN THE WORLD

A WORD FROM OUR CHAIRMAN

In almost every nation, we have seen the mountains of society shaken by the coronavirus pandemic. Whether business, government, education, religion, arts and entertainment, or family, no sphere of influence has been untouched by this novel virus.

But here’s the thing to remember as entrepreneurs and business people of FAITH: We don’t deny the reality of an enemy nor run from it because of fear. Goliath was real, but David responded by running to the giant. He declared God’s outcome, and it happened just as David said.

After Joseph interpreted Pharaoh’s troubling dream, he didn’t deny that seven years of famine would be coming upon Egypt. No. Joseph prepared the nation for it. How? By bringing forth God-given solutions that would ultimately save not only Egypt but the entire world, including Joseph’s family, from starvation. God is looking for “Josephs” to bring stability to our times. Now, more than ever, people all over the world are crying out for stability, financial security, and a return to “normalcy” (e.g., return to work, attend church, go back to school, get a haircut, or simply go to the movies).

Even when this pandemic ends, much of our work will just be beginning, especially in the business arena. We must be ready to rebuild communities, cities, and countries.

We also must be ready to go even further. God recently told me,

The Church is supposed to bring forth the strongest economy on the planet and use it to shift the culture of the world, like Joseph.

Dr. Bill Winston
Founder and Chairman

STATEMENT
FROM OUR

This past year was difficult for entrepreneurs and small businesses disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, our Joseph Center ecosystem experienced a greater demand for assistance from our small business clients and students.

The Joseph Center® staff continued to provide a faith-and Spirit-filled resource to our clients for their personal and professional goals. We encouraged and prayed for our community to remain strong and courageous. We actively expanded our online capability to provide individuals with professional, entrepreneurial, and personal development materials. Our doors remained open to help our community both locally and globally.

We are part of a great community here at The Joseph Center®. It never ceases to amaze me how people’s lives are transformed as we continue to proclaim the impactful and transformative messages through our programs.

We are honored to serve under the exceptional visionary leadership of Dr. Bill Winston, our chairman and founder. We look forward with great anticipation to what lies ahead for The Joseph Center®. We are thankful for his desire to continue to train entrepreneurs Doing Business God’s Way!

Blessings,

Deloris S. Thomas, Ph.D.
President & COO The Joseph Center® and all Related Entities

This past year was difficult for entrepreneurs and small businesses disproportionately affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. As a result, our Joseph Center ecosystem experienced a greater demand for assistance from our small business clients and students.

The Joseph Center® staff continued to provide a faith-and Spirit-filled resource to our clients for their personal and professional goals. We encouraged and prayed for our community to remain strong and courageous. We actively expanded our online capability to provide individuals with professional, entrepreneurial, and personal development materials. Our doors remained open to help our community both locally and globally.

We are part of a great community here at The Joseph Center®. It never ceases to amaze me how people’s lives are transformed as we continue to proclaim the impactful and transformative messages through our programs.

We are honored to serve under the exceptional visionary leadership of Dr. Bill Winston, our chairman and founder. We look forward with great anticipation to what lies ahead for The Joseph Center®. We are thankful for his desire to continue to train entrepreneurs Doing Business God’s Way!

Blessings,

Deloris S. Thomas, Ph.D.
President & COO The Joseph Center® and all Related Entities

IMPACTING COMMUNITIES

By Dave Ramseur, Dean Business & Entrepreneurship Program

During 2020, the nine-month Business & Entrepreneurship Campus program successfully pivoted from in-class Instruction to conducting classes virtually. The students and staff quickly adapted to the new format and the program moved forward without losing any students. “Live” instruction continued to provide the opportunity for the students to apply business concepts being taught while in class and receive immediate feedback from industry experts.

As JBS embarks on the new year and returns to the classroom, we are positioned to now offer a “blended” experience. This will consist of the live classroom instruction experience to local students and simultaneously provide it to anyone around the world attending virtually as well.

In addition to classroom instruction, our JBS Alumni continue to make an impact in their communities and receive national recognition for their accomplishments. A couple of examples are Quilen Blackwell (Fall 2011), JBS Alumnus, the CEO of Southside Blooms, a farm-to-vase florist on Chicago’s South Side. This business turns vacant lots in the economically challenged Englewood community into flower farms that give employment and hope to local youth community members. NBC's Today Show highlighted Quilen's business for the innovative work his organization is doing.

Also, JBS Alumna Brianna Hairlson (Fall 2018) would successfully shift her dance studio during COVID and win several grants, including being awarded a $25,000 grant from “100 for 100,” a national program for 100 Black women entrepreneurs in the U. S. sponsored by American Express. She is incredibly grateful for the role JBS has played in her entrepreneurship journey.

LOOKING BACK AT 2020

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CLASSES OFFERED

The Joseph Center® kept our doors open this year virtually by offering virtual classes, workshops, and events.

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COMPLETERS & DIVERSE ADVISED

A noteworthy number of individuals completed our programs and classes, and used our business consulting services.

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DIVERSE CLIENTS

61% of our consulting clients were business owners of color.

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WATCHED BUSINESS & LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE

37,000 individuals tuned in from 93 countries to watch the virtual Business & Leadership Conference and unleash their greatest potential.

  • We changed, as times changed,
    pivoting towards using technology and
    experience to build resilient businesses,
    meaningful relationships and a community
    of faith... and we believe the best is yet
    to come!

TAKING BUSINESS TO THE NEXT LEVEL

by Melissa Duff Brown, Director of Business Development at The Joseph Center®

In 2020, The Joseph Center® Business Development Team focused on supporting our entrepreneurship programs and the business owners in our service area by providing the resources and assistance to sustain and scale their business enterprises.

We expanded access to The Joseph Center® programs and resources by switching to virtual platforms and systems. This year we provided over 2,800 one-on-one client meetings, helped clients secure over $2.25 million in access to capital, 75 government contracts with a dollar value of $270 million and $10 million in export sales, which created and retained 485 jobs, and assisted 127 companies to secure business certifications to do business with Fortune 500 companies and local, state and federal governments.

Examples of our success stories include an international distribution deal for JBS Alumnus Anthony Haynes and JBS Alumni Akeela Redmond's trucking business expansion. It also meant that other companies were able to keep their doors open with access to CARESAct funding.


ADDITIONAL IMPACT IN THE FOLLOWING 2020 PROJECT LAUNCHES

• Launch of Training.JosephCenter.com, an online training platform.

• Development and launch of a 3D interactive platform for our annual conference

• Development of a Virtual International Trade Mission featuring five countries


IN THE YEAR 2020

SBDC-ITC-PTAC COUNSELING HOURS: 2,500

In 2020,

GOVERNMENT CONTRACTS: $266 MILLION

Three years ago with the help of IL PTAC, Lakeland Larsen Elevator secured a temporary BPA Elevator Maintenance contract with Naval Training Station Great Lakes.

Chris assisted us in renewing our Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB) certification this year along with the renewing the BPA contract with Great Lakes. This contract is a great asset to our organization with revenue of approximately $500,000 per year and we have hired two new personnel to maintain this ongoing project.

EMPOWERING A GLOBAL CLASSROOM

by Dr. Irene M. Abrons | Dean of Online and Innovative Programs

The nine-month Business & Leadership Online program allows students to be a part of our global classroom and network with other students from around the world. Together, with experiential learning and social presence, students can connect on a spiritual, intellectual, and emotional level. These aspects help students develop a sense of belonging and community and play a positive impact on learning outcomes.

As the world changed in 2020, so did our classrooms. We used virtual technology, live collaborates, peer-to-peer discussions, along with prayer and weekly student communication to engage and collaborate across diverse environments to plant fruitful businesses.

The class of 2020 will forever be known for pushing boundaries. The students rose to meet the challenges of these uncertain times and proved that there is nothing they cannot do.

In all the cohorts combined, our students ranged from 33 states and 10 countries. These students re-created today’s businesses operations; persevered, innovated, and created history. We believe that JBS students will do mighty exploits for the Kingdom of God.

As the Dean of the Online and Innovative programs, I believe endless possibilities lie ahead with God-inspired vision and His ever faithful, I am confident that 2021 will be BIGGER and even BETTER!

WE ARE GLOBAL AND GENERATIONAL

The Global Partner Program which is designed to create a partnership between you and the Joseph Business School to establish a JBS location in your local community. We desire is to equip Kingdom-minded entrepreneurs to lead in their sphere of influence. We believe that entrepreneurship is a calling from God and the Joseph Business School is an instrument in the God’s hand to help train leaders worldwide that will make His plan for this earth reality.

Our Joseph Business School – South Africa location is a testament to God's faithfulness, His provision, and His Word He gave to our founder Dr. Bill Winston. Dr. Bill Winston, along with our president, Dr. Deloris Thomas, had the opportunity to inaugurate our Durban, South Africa campus at the beginning of 2020. By year-end, they graduated their first cohort with 29 graduates.

We partner with a wide range of organizations to make the vision of global partner a reality here in America and beyond.

EXECUTIVE ACCELERATOR PROGRAM

A uniquely designed program for established entrepreneurs

Before the world changed, Joseph Business School had some changes of its own. At the beginning of 2020, we launched the six-week Executive Accelerator Program (EAP). This unique program was designed for established entrepreneurs to develop and execute strategies and actionable plans to scale their businesses. This course helped experienced business owners structure a cohesive learning solution to create additional value in their companies and match their businesses with opportunities and resources that will help them dominate the marketplace.

INSPIRATIONAL AND POWERFUL

EAP executives traveled each week from four different states and around the Chicagoland area to attend the campus program and be a part of a collaborative community of Kingdom entrepreneurs.

VALUED OVER A MILLION DOLLARS

Even in the midst of the pandemic, this first cohort excelled in accomplishing their goals. At the end of the six-weeks, more than half of the students received over a million dollars in contracts and funding.

AS WE CONTINUE TO TRAILBLAZE, WE WILL LAUNCH THE EXECUTIVE ACCELERATOR PROGRAM ONLINE, INCLUDING EXPERT SPEAKERS, HANDS-ON WORKSHOPS, AND RELEVANT CASE-STUDIES. OUR GOAL IS TO DEEPEN AND SHARPEN YOUR UNDERSTANDING OF STRATEGY, LEADERSHIP, AND EXECUTION TO ADAPT AND LEAD IN TIMES OF RAPID CHANGE.

“TAKING THE LEAD FOR JUSTICE”

By Dr. Eddie Kornegay

R.I.S.E. continues to be at the forefront in delivering vital programming and resources to program participants, their families, and communities.

R.I.S.E. made significant shifts in its programming model to address the needs of its participants during a time of no in-person engagement. Through technology, R.I.S.E. experienced growth in its ability to offer programming virtually at Cook County Department of Correction & Illinois Department of Corrections.

SINCE MARCH 2020

Prison Ministry Pen Pals have received and responded to over 1,100 letters from inmates in 185 institutions located across 50 states. R.I.S.E. has engaged as a COVID-19 first respondent in Cook County as part of the Prison Early Release Response team (P.E.R.R.). R.I.S.E. has engaged in community-based collaborations with the Chicago Police Department (CPD) Faith-Based Initiative & Violence Prevention Programming.

1100

Pen Pals Responses

500

People being connected to employment, housing, clothing.

5408

Received Sunday Services & Money Mondays DVDs Daily
*Program Suspended in March, 2020

225

Employment Matching

  • In the year 2020, we reached
    over 1 million individuals
    through our Social Media channels.

Joseph Center® Foundation is the prophetic and funding arm of the Joseph Business School that supports the vision, mission, and global operations. It was launched in the summer of 2020 with the Joseph Business Quarterly.

Demo Architecture & Interior Design

Your gift to the JOSEPH CENTER® FOUNDATION helps to support faith-based businesses that share our vision to produce wealth-creation opportunities and economic prosperity that will be used to transform nations and cultures.

The government alone does not have the answers, but, together, we do.
THE TIME TO ACT IS NOW.

BELIEVERS are supposed to bring forth the strongest economy on the planet and use it to shift the culture of the world like Joseph.

—Dr. Bill Winston

THE JOSEPH CENTER® FOUNDATION
is uniquely positioned to answer this prophetic call.

Your financial commitment will support the mission of The Joseph Center® Foundation to eradicate poverty and rebuild communities—ONE COMMUNITY AT A TIME.

Your gift to the JOSEPH CENTER® FOUNDATION helps to support faith-based businesses that share our vision to produce wealth-creation opportunities and economic prosperity that will be used to transform nations and cultures.

WEALTH CREATION CENTER (WCC)

Generating Wealth for Generations

The Importance of Financial Literacy

Financial Foundations for Wealth Creation focuses on the ability to manage personal finances through education about basic budgeting, investing, personal credit, real estate, retirement, and tax planning. In this course, students will learn to evaluate barriers to entry and potential markets using decision-making tools like cash flow statements and budgets.

Money Mondays

Money Mondays podcast contains interviews with financial professionals who share both personal stories and practical applications on debt, investing, retirement, insurance, and much more.
This podcast is perfect for the person who wants to learn the basics of everything regarding money as well as for the expert seeking authoritative sources. It’s insightful, fun, and liberating. Don’t miss the opportunity to be motivated and educated to get your money in order. Tune in for both the audio podcast on iHeart Radio or by video on YouTube. We look forward to seeing you prosper!

5 STARS ON
APPLE PODCAST

130000+

VIEWS OF THE MONEY MONDAYS PODCAST

18

EPISODES OF THE MONEY MONDAYS PODCAST AIRED DURING 2020

340

TRAINIED IN FINANCIAL LITERACY CLASSES

Influencing Change With

CONTINUING EDUCATION & PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT (CEPD)

The Continuing Education and Professional Development Department of the Joseph Business School creates pathways to empowerment that eradicate poverty. Our curriculum offers General Education, Technology and Career Development courses designed to assist you in acquiring skills necessary to position yourself for a better paying job or simply to acquire knowledge you have always desired.

  • INTRODUCING A NEW WAY
    TO CONNECT WITH BUSINESS.

    LINE IS NOW OPEN!
    8 7 7 - 5 4 3 - 9 4 4 3


    PRAYER@JBS.EDU

WHAT A VIRTUAL CONFERENCE!

The 2020 Business & Leadership Conference, usually held each March, was postponed until the fall due to the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

In November, the Joseph Business School hosted the most innovative, transformative, and powerful Business & Leadership Conference to date. Nearly 37,000 people gathered around their computers and devices to be inspired and equipped in their personal faith journey in business and leadership.

11430+

Registered to attend the virtual Business & Leadership Conference

93

Countries watched

  • As we all look forward to 2021,
    Joseph Business School is more than
    committed to making entrepreneurs'
    dreams a reality, to carry out the
    great work to bring justice reform,
    economic development, help you
    build generational wealth, and
    turn desolate places into the Garden of Eden.