Economic and Community Development Institute logo

Economic and Community Development Institute

Public charity · Grantmaker Columbus, OH EIN: 31-1145544 Website

Economic & Community Development Institute (ECDI) is a Columbus, Ohio-based public charity that supports entrepreneurs and small businesses through lending, training, mentoring, and business-development services. Its stated mission is to invest in people to create measurable and enduring social and economic change.

Key facts about Economic and Community Development Institute

In short: Economic and Community Development Institute gave $267K across 4 grants in 2025 (avg $67K), mostly in Ohio. Source: 2025 IRS Form 990.

EIN
31-1145544
Latest 990 filing
Form 990, 2025
Annual giving (2025)
$266,967
Grants made (2025)
4
Average grant
$66,742
Median grant
$38,685
Total assets
$77,992,000
Primary geography
Ohio (96% of itemized 2025 grant dollars)

Data from IRS Form 990, 2025; updated September 2026.

Financial Overview

From 2025 IRS Form 990 · View filing

Total Assets

$78.0M

+0.8% YoY

Annual Giving

$267K

+1604.0% YoY

Grant Count

4

+300.0% YoY

Avg Grant Size

$67K

+326.0% YoY

How Economic and Community Development Institute gives

  • Giving fell 53% from 2022 to 2025. Method

From the foundation's IRS Form 990 filings. Methodology.

Research compiled by Grantable AI from public sources. Last updated September 2026.

Mission & Focus Areas

ECDI’s mission is “investing in people to create measurable and enduring social and economic change.” Its small-business development services include one-on-one technical assistance, business-development training, and sector-specific business incubation. The organization also provides loans to entrepreneurs who may not qualify for traditional financing. ECDI reported disbursing 1,021 loans totaling more than $18.5 million during fiscal year 2025.

Its programs include support for contractors, food businesses, veterans, and women entrepreneurs. ECDI also offers loan programs for purposes such as working capital, equipment, business expansion, and—in specified programs—commercial real estate.

Grantmaking

ECDI reported four grants totaling $266,967 in filing year 2025. Grant amounts ranged from $9,476 to $180,122, with a median of $38,684. The stated purpose for each was to collaborate on business-development programming intended to improve local economies and increase the recipient organization’s capacity to offer small-business resources.

Open Grants

2 open opportunities from Economic and Community Development Institute

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Geographic Focus

Where this funder awards grants

ECDI is based in Columbus and lists offices in Akron, Canton, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Dayton, Portsmouth, and Toledo. Its website describes coverage across Ohio, with service in Kentucky, Indiana, and West Virginia counties in the Greater Cincinnati and Portsmouth markets. Its USDA lending program covers all 88 Ohio counties. The 2025 grants went to recipients in Ohio and West Virginia, with 96% of grant dollars going to Ohio and 4% to West Virginia.

Grant Distribution by State

3states

Share of 2025 grant dollars across all 4 itemized grants.

Cities

CantonColumbusNorth CantonSaint ClairsvilleSpringfieldCarrolltonEast CantonLouisvillePort WashingtonAkronClevelandE CantonEast SpartaFortsmouthGahannaGallipolisHartvilleHuntingtonMansfieldPortsmouth

Giving Over Time

Total grant dollars and number of grants per year

$0$200K$400K$600K$800K0 grants2019 0 grants2020 86 grants2021 39 grants2022 9 grants2023 1 grant2024 4 grants2025

From 2021 to 2025, annual grant giving ranged from $16K (2024) to $638K (2021). In 2025 it made 4 grants totaling $267K.

Grant Insights

How this funder distributes its grants

Top Recipients

Top 4 recipients in 2025

Community Improvement Corporation of Belmont County: $180KCommunity ImprovementCorporation of Belmont County$180KShawnee State University: $57KShawnee State University$57KOhio CDC: $21KOhio CDC$21KOur Jobs Our Children's Our Future Inc: $9KOur Jobs Our Children's OurFuture Inc$9K

The largest 2025 recipient was Community Improvement Corporation of Belmont County ($180K). Together the top 4 received $267K.

Grant Size Distribution

139 grants across all recorded years

135<$50K2$50–100K2$100–250K$250–500K$500K–1M$1–5M$5M+

The most common grant size was under $50K: 135 grants of 139 (97%).

Giving History

Grant recipients and amounts by year

RecipientPurposeAmount
Community Improvement Corporation of Belmont County Saint Clairsville, OHCollaborate with the organization to implement needed business development programming that improves the economy in their communities and to increase the capacity of the organization to offer additional small business resources for their residents.$180,122
Shawnee State University Fortsmouth, OHCollaborate with the organization to implement needed business development programming that improves the economy in their communities and to increase the capacity of the organization to offer additional small business resources for their residents.$56,814
Ohio CDC Columbus, OHCollaborate with the organization to implement needed business development programming that improves the economy in their communities and to increase the capacity of the organization to offer additional small business resources for their residents.$20,555
Our Jobs Our Children's Our Future Inc Huntington, WVCollaborate with the organization to implement needed business development programming that improves the economy in their communities and to increase the capacity of the organization to offer additional small business resources for their residents.$9,476

Financial History

Multi-year comparison from IRS filings

Filing year Assets Revenue Expenses Grants
2025 $77,992,000 $16,450,425 $16,231,478 $266,967 (4 grants)
2024 $77,366,197 $15,309,878 $13,447,130 $15,667 (1 grant)
2023 $74,364,076 $13,823,454 $12,852,039 $159,910 (9 grants)
Revenue
Expenses
Net Investment Income
$0$10M$20M$30M2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Metric202520242023
Total Assets$77,992,000$77,366,197$74,364,076
Revenue$16,450,425$15,309,878$13,823,454
Expenses$16,231,478$13,447,130$12,852,039
Net Investment Income$221,746$159,307$5,427

Data update history

When this profile's IRS filing data changed on Grantable

  1. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2021 (received by the IRS May 16, 2022)
  2. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2022 (received by the IRS March 21, 2023)
  3. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2023 (received by the IRS March 21, 2024)
  4. Updated Form 990 for fiscal year 2024 (received by the IRS May 14, 2025)
  5. Added Form 990 for fiscal year 2025 (received by the IRS May 6, 2026)
  6. IRS filings on file for fiscal years 2019–2024

Leadership & Key People

Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings

The 2025 filing lists Inna Kinney as Founder & CEO; Steven Fireman as President/Secretary; Darren Cherry as Chair/Board Member; and Jeffrey Buller as Treasurer/Board Member. It also lists Magaret Ference, John Hrusovsky II, Mathew Glover, Rodell McCullough, Carrie Rosenfelt, and Alicia Townsend as board members.

Economic and Community Development Institute is led by Inna Kinney, Founder & CEO since 2024 (on filings since 2019); 4 of 14 officers listed in 2025 are compensated.

Officers on the 2025 filing

  • Inna Kinney

    Founder & CEO

    CEO → Founder & CEO, 2024

    On filings since 2019

    40 hrs/week

    $155K (2019) → $309K (2025)

  • Steven Fireman

    President & Secretary

    President → President & Secretary, 2024

    On filings since 2019

    40 hrs/week

    $199K (2019) → $359K (2025)

  • Darren Cherry

    Chair & Board Member

    Board Chair → Chair & Voting Independent Board Member, 2023

    Chair & Voting Independent Board Member → Chair & Board Member, 2025

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Fonda Williams

    Chief Gov't Affairs & Economic Development

    Chief Gov't Affairs & Economic Development Officer → Chief Gov't Affairs & Economic Development, 2025

    On filings since 2023

    40 hrs/week

    $130K (2023) → $187K (2025)

  • Brian Barret

    Vice President of Financial Management

    On filings since 2024

    40 hrs/week

    $112K (2024) → $112K (2025)

  • Alicia Townsend

    Board Member

    Director → Voting Independent Board Member, 2022

    Voting Independent Board Member → Board Member, 2025

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • John Hrusovsky II

    Board Member

    Director → Voting Independent Board Member, 2022

    Voting Independent Board Member → Board Member, 2025

    On filings since 2019

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Jeffrey Buller

    Treasurer & Board Member

    Voting Independent Board Member → Treasurer & Voting Independent Board Member, 2024

    Treasurer & Voting Independent Board Member → Treasurer & Board Member, 2025

    On filings since 2020

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Magaret Ference

    Board Member

    Director → Voting Independent Board Member, 2022

    Voting Independent Board Member → Board Member, 2025

    On filings since 2020

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Rodell McCullough

    Board Member

    Voting Independent Board Member → Board Member, 2025

    On filings since 2022

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Jeffery Patter

    Board Member

    Voting Independent Board Member → Board Member, 2025

    On filings since 2023

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Tara Campbell

    Board Member

    Voting Independent Board Member → Board Member, 2025

    On filings since 2023

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Carrie Rosenfelt

    Board Member

    Voting Independent Board Member → Board Member, 2025

    On filings since 2024

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

  • Mathew Glover

    Board Member

    Voting Independent Board Member → Board Member, 2025

    On filings since 2024

    1 hr/week

    No compensation reported

Former officers (30)
  • Former: Anna Parlet (2022–2024) — Vice President of Development
  • Former: Jasmine Dixon (2023–2024) — Vice President of Business Growth Development & Fundraising
  • Former: Maureen Thomas (2023–2024) — CFO
  • Former: Stephanie Marie Villegas (2024) — Vice President of Lending & Sales
  • Former: Adam Wezey (2019–2023) — Chief Credit Officer
  • Former: Moniqua Spencer (2019–2023) — Voting Independent Board Member
  • Former: Stephanie Steward-Young (2020–2023) — Voting Independent Board Member
  • Former: James Turner (2022–2023) — Voting Independent Board Member
  • Former: John McCourt (2022–2023) — Voting Independent Board Member
  • Former: Douglas Craven (2023) — Vice President of Strategic Partnerships & Fundraising
  • Former: Kevin Hart (2023) — Voting Independent Board Member
  • Former: Trudy Bartley (2019–2022) — Voting Independent Board Member
  • Former: Amy Wanzo (2022) — Vice President
  • Former: Doghlas Craven (2022) — Vice President
  • Former: Joseph Armstrong (2022) — Vice President
  • Former: Stephanie Steward (2022) — Voting Independent Board Member
  • Former: Timothy Green (2022) — Deputy Counsel
  • Former: Pete Mattingly (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Retta Tegegne (2019–2021) — Director
  • Former: Kim Coleman (2020–2021) — Chief Credit Officer
  • Former: Charles Malone (2021) — Controller
  • Former: David Bloomfield (2019–2020) — Director
  • Former: Jeffrey Gerberry (2019–2020) — CFO
  • Former: Jeremy Gutierrez (2019–2020) — Director
  • Former: Lonnie Miles (2019–2020) — Director
  • Former: Nick Henderson (2019–2020) — Director
  • Former: Danielle Syndor (2020) — Executive Director of Nothern Ohio
  • Former: Paul Bloomfield (2020) — Director
  • Former: Elisa Cooke (2019) — Associate Council & Compliance Officer
  • Former: Stefanie Steward-Young (2019) — Director

Data from IRS Form 990 filings, 2019–2025. "On filings since" is the earliest filing we hold that lists the person; hours are average hours per week as reported.

Compensation Overview

From 2025 IRS filing

Steven Fireman — President/Secretary: $359KSteven FiremanPresident/Secretary$359KInna Kinney — Founder & CEO: $309KInna KinneyFounder & CEO$309KFonda Williams — Chief Gov't Affairs and Economic Development: $187KFonda WilliamsChief Gov't Affairs and…$187KBrian Barret — VP of Financial Management: $112KBrian BarretVP of Financial Management$112K

The highest reported compensation on the 2025 filing was $359K, to Steven Fireman (President/Secretary). 4 officers or directors reported compensation on that filing.

Contact

Mailing address: 1655 Old Leonard Avenue, Columbus, OH 43219
Phone: (614) 559-0115
Website: https://ecdi.org

Frequently asked questions about Economic and Community Development Institute

How much does Economic and Community Development Institute give each year?

Economic and Community Development Institute gave $267K across 4 grants in 2025, according to its 2025 IRS Form 990. In 2024 it gave $16K across 1 grant.

What is Economic and Community Development Institute's typical grant size?

Economic and Community Development Institute's median grant in 2025 was $38,685, and its average grant was $66,742, across 4 grants on its 2025 IRS Form 990.

Where does Economic and Community Development Institute give grants?

Economic and Community Development Institute gives mostly in Ohio: 96% of the grant dollars itemized on its 2025 IRS Form 990 went to recipients there.

Does Economic and Community Development Institute give general operating support?

Not in 2025: none of the 4 grants with a stated purpose on Economic and Community Development Institute's 2025 IRS Form 990 were described as general or operating support.

How large is Economic and Community Development Institute?

Economic and Community Development Institute reported $78.0M in total assets on its 2025 IRS Form 990. Its revenue that year was $16.5M.

What does Economic and Community Development Institute fund?

ECDI’s mission is “investing in people to create measurable and enduring social and economic change.” Its small-business development services include one-on-one technical assistance, business-development training, and sector-specific business incubation. See mission & focus areas ↑

How do I apply for a grant from Economic and Community Development Institute?

Economic and Community Development Institute has no public application process in the sources Grantable reviewed. Check ecdi.org for current guidelines, or contact the foundation directly before submitting a request.

What is Economic and Community Development Institute's EIN?

Economic and Community Development Institute's EIN (Employer Identification Number) is 31-1145544. IRS Form 990 filing data is available on this page for 2019–2025.

Data last updated September 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990 filings. Research dossier generated September 2026.

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