National Disability Institute (NDI) is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to building a better economic future for people with disabilities.
NDI is the first national organization committed exclusively to championing economic empowerment, financial education, asset development and financial stability for all persons with disabilities. NDI affects change through public education, policy development, training, technical assistance and innovative initiatives. Visit nationaldisabilityinstitute.org.
MEET OUR STAFF | PAST PROJECTS
Meet Our Staff
Nikki Powis is the Director of Small Business Programs for the National Disability Institute (NDI). Nikki is responsible for the strategic direction and implementation of NDI’s multiple small business initiatives serving entrepreneurs and small business owners with disabilities. Her role includes championing NDI’s efforts to expand Diversity, Equity and Inclusion within the entrepreneurial eco-system and supporting entrepreneurs with disabilities to start, build and grow their businesses.Nikki Powis brings over 30 years of experience managing programs to advance economic opportunities for underrepresented and underserved populations at the local, regional, statewide, and national level. Nikki has worked as an educator and Director of workforce programs to include education and expansion of small business ownership and has experience developing curriculum for workforce development, entrepreneurship, and small business development.Nikki has served on multiple advisory boards focused on workforce development and increasing opportunities for employment of individuals with disabilities and multiple barriers to employment.Nikki brings both extensive professional experience, and as a parent of a child with a disability, personal knowledge and passion into her work toward supporting positive change efforts.
npowis@ndi-inc.org
Ruth E. Chavez is the Business Development Counselor and Community Navigator at National Disability Institute, specializing in supporting small businesses owned by individuals with disabilities across the nation. In her current role, Ruth provides expert guidance on feasibility studies, business plans and personal budgets, helping clients apply for start-up funding through vocational rehabilitation. Her support is tailored to the unique preferences and capacities of individuals with disabilities. Ruth’s prior experience includes a role as a bilingual Business Consultant and Training Coordinator at the University of Maryland’s Small Business Development Center, where she provided business counseling and organized numerous training programs for small business owners. Ruth’s background in entrepreneurship, combined with her bilingual skills in English and Spanish, equips her with a unique perspective and set of skills for supporting the success of small businesses.
rchavez@ndi-inc.org
Caroline Bolas is the Small Business Specialist at NDI. Caroline has had a varied career, including being a small business owner, a nonprofit consultant, and a direct service provider to people with disabilities. She has extensive project management, training, and curriculum development experience. Prior to joining NDI, most recently Caroline served as the Maryland State SOAR Lead, providing technical assistance to the SSI/SSDI Outreach, Access, and Recovery program. Caroline holds a master’s degree in Occupational Psychology from London Guildhall University and a master’s degree in Social Policy and Social Work from the London School of Economics. Outside of work, Caroline enjoys hiking, photography and nature walks.
cbolas@ndi-inc.org
Alexis (Lexi) Jones is the Project Coordinator for the Small Business Team. She is a Licensed Social Worker with 14 years of experience working with vulnerable and underserved populations. Lexi previously worked overseeing the intake process and enrichment programs for a regional organization that provided direct services to people who are blind or visually impaired. She has also served as the Advocacy Department Head for an organization serving crime victims and Resident Services Coordinator for an Independent Living Community serving seniors and adults with disabilities. Lexi holds a master’s degree in Social Work from Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. She is an artist and avid gardener, who enjoys spending as much time as possible in nature and with her family.
ajones@ndi-inc.org
Past Projects
Small Business Ownership by People with Disabilities: Challenges and Opportunities Report
This report was made possible through funding from JPMorgan Chase & Co. The findings and recommendations reflect the views of National Disability Institute. The report offers recommendations for improving and expanding the ecosystem that can improve and expand support for entrepreneurs and small business owners with disabilities. Sources for the report included Census Bureau survey data, entrepreneurs with disabilities, state Vocational Rehabilitation agency (SVRA) leaders and experts from organizations in the ecosystem of disability-owned business enterprises. The entrepreneurs were asked to identify the facilitators and barriers to developing their small business, including the support services available to them, and which additional supports were needed to help grow and sustain disability-owned small businesses.
Read the full report with findings and recommendations.
Watch the launch webinar on YouTube.
Community Navigator Pilot Program (CNPP)
In November 2021, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) funded National Disability Institute to implement a Community Navigator Pilot Program (CNPP). This two-year program brought together over 40 government agencies, financial institutions, community nonprofit organizations and SBA-funded resource centers. These agencies made a commitment to work together to provide resources and improve responsive, customer-sensitive services for entrepreneurs and small business owners with disabilities. NDI Small Business provided webinars and training sessions to an audience of almost 16,000 and provided one on one counseling to over 847 business owners with disabilities from December of 2021 through May 2024, when the pilot project ended. NDI also supported eco-system partners in ensuring their services were responsive and accessible to the needs of entrepreneurs and small business owners with disabilities through disability sensitivity and awareness training.
Disability Owned – Streaming Channel
NDI has been working with Boston Media to create a free streaming TV channel providing business, education, and motivational information for business owners with disabilities. The channel also celebrates disability owned businesses. Content on the channel includes videos and resources that entrepreneurs with disabilities can use to start, build and grow their business and discover non-profits, government agencies and other entrepreneurial support organizations committed to building disability business enterprises.
The Biz-Ability Show
Funded by TD Bank produced by Boston Media and hosted by NDI, this streaming TV chat show features savvy entrepreneurs with disabilities sharing their stories of their road to business. Viewers experience the journey of small business owners with disabilities at various stages of business and hear the why behind their business startup, the challenges and successes, the ups and downs and everything in between through a candid and spontaneous dialogue with the host.
Support the Financial Health of Small Business Owners with Disabilities
Funded by MetLife Foundation, NDI brought together two cohorts of entrepreneurs with disabilities to form learning communities. The series was aimed at entrepreneurs with disabilities who had an established business and had started trading, and who wished to improve their financial health skills. The format of the community included two meetings per month. One session includes educational content related to business financial health topics such as business tax filing, pricing, profit and loss, preparation for accessing capital with interactive Q &A, the second session provided an opportunity for the participants to share with each other and included an NDI small business specialist as a mentor for the group.
Marketplace Feasibility Study
Funded by Wells Fargo, this project explored the feasibility of developing an online marketplace to support the sale of products and services by small business owners with disabilities. NDI research identified that there are more than 1.8 million small business owners with disabilities nationwide. The exploration of development of an online marketplace was done because it could enhance opportunities for outreach to potential customers that expands sales and reach for small business owners with disabilities who have limited marketing budgets.
Training and Technical Assistance to CDFIs
Funded by Wells Fargo, this project responded to the identified need of small business owners with disabilities for access to capital in the form of loans and grants to help start and grow their businesses in terms of staffing, technology, equipment acquisition and financial payment and accounting systems. A small number of CDFIs are targeting low and moderate income (LMI) owners of small businesses who are individuals with disabilities. Beginning in February 2023, NDI partnered with CDFIs to provide a series of five webinars to help increase entrepreneurs with disabilities’ understanding of the role that CDFIs can play and improve CDFIs’ awareness of this unmet market need. Additionally, NDI provided follow-up technical assistance to CDFIs wishing to improve their supports, services and access to capital to business owners with disabilities.