On Tuesday, July 28, the EKY Runway Program celebrated innovation and impact by hosting its 2026 Social Enterprise Accelerator Demo Day. The event highlighted the graduating 2026 SEA Fellows and showcased their work developing solutions to Eastern Kentucky’s most pressing workforce obstacles.
What Is a Social Enterprise?
In Eastern Kentucky, the greatest barriers to entering the workforce are transportation, childcare, and housing. Social enterprises are businesses or organizations that address these challenges, and they play a crucial role in economic development and workforce participation. They are designed to maximize profits while creating positive impacts in the region.
Instead of paying shareholders, profits are reinvested into advancing the social mission. Focused on revenue, stability, and a clear social cause, they blend financial success with meaningful change.
“It takes everybody working in our communities to make progress, for us to grow and for us to succeed,” said Emma Davidson, a Child Care Health Consultant for the Kentucky River District Health Department, during a panel that kicked off the Demo Day program.
People all over Eastern Kentucky have ideas for making a difference in their community but don’t know where to start. How does someone take an idea and turn it into something that has a social impact?
From a Family’s Childcare Challenge to a Social Enterprise
When Jessica Lucas-Long discovered the Social Enterprise Accelerator on LinkedIn, that’s exactly where she was at. She had a vision for a blended childcare center that provides high-quality traditional services as well as exceptionally trained and qualified skilled nursing care to children aged 0-12.
Her inspiration? Lived experience.
In 2017, Jessica’s daughter was born with spina bifida, and when her maternity leave ended, she and her husband were faced with an impossible decision.
“The options were to leave the workforce to care for her or compromise her medical care, which is just not an option,” she said.
Luckily, Jessica’s father offered another solution. For almost three years, he drove 20 minutes each way, three times per day to the school Jessica worked at as a preschool teacher so she could provide her daughter’s care. Between August 2017 and March 2020, he spent more than 1,000 hours transporting Jessica’s daughter to receive care while Jessica worked.
But Jessica understood most families don’t have the kind of support that makes solutions like that possible. Thus, the idea for HAPPIE Kids Inc. was born.
“I never want another family to have to make a crisis-driven decision between economic stability and caring for their kid,” Jessica said.
While Jessica officially filed paperwork with the Kentucky Secretary of State to establish HAPPIE Kids in 2021, further development stalled—until she applied for the 2026 Social Enterprise Accelerator Cohort.
How the Accelerator Helped Take HAPPIE Kids from Idea to Reality
Over the 12-week program, the Social Enterprise Accelerator guided Jessica through starting her business, connected her with community partners, and provided one-on-one mentorship to help navigate whatever challenges she faced.
Jessica always planned to follow through with creating HAPPIE Kids, but the Accelerator did just that—accelerated it.
“I learned a great deal that otherwise would have taken me a lot longer to learn through trial and error,” she says. “Somebody’s already got the expertise to guide you. Don’t do the trial and error! If this is something you’re going to do, you’ll need to learn this information somewhere, and [with the Social Enterprise Accelerator] it’s curated. It’s already laid out for us. All we have to do is show up.”
HAPPIE Kids, saying she felt protective of it. Over time, SOAR staff encouraged her to open up and see the value in networking to advance her business.
“Now I won’t shut up about it,” Jessica joked.
She also said she didn’t consider herself an entrepreneur when she applied. Now graduated from the program, Jessica wears the title of entrepreneur with pride, having taken concrete steps to develop her concept into a strong framework for what’s to come.
“For anyone on the fence about whether this is right for them or not, this is your sign. It’s right for you. You won’t regret it.”
Join the Next Social Enterprise Accelerator Cohort
Through the Social Enterprise Accelerator, our team is helping local entrepreneurs launch and grow businesses that tackle real community challenges like childcare, housing, transportation, and workforce issues.
These challenges have become real roadblocks to employment and the economic development of many Eastern Kentucky communities. Through training and mentorship programs like the Social Enterprise Accelerator, we can tackle these challenges head on.
The Social Enterprise Accelerator Cohort will give budding social enterprise entrepreneurs:
- Free, 12-week virtual-based program
- Biweekly expert-led business coaching
- Two in-person events—including a Demo Day celebration—to pitch your business idea and network with community leaders
- Mentor network access with matching, guidance, and feedback throughout the cohort
- Biweekly 1:1 coaching session
If building a business that makes a difference sounds like what you are hoping to achieve, we’d love to help you get there. You don’t have to navigate the process alone!
- Applications Due: Saturday, August 15, 2026
- Program Timeline: Kickoff during first week of September, wraps mid-November (12 weeks plus Demo Day)
- Weekly online sessions on Tuesdays, 6-8 p.m. ET
- Primarily virtual with two in-person events
- Cost: Free
Join our community of Eastern Kentucky dreamers, doers, and innovators who are building businesses that make a difference today.
Apply for the next Social Enterprise Accelerator Cohort HERE.