NOLABA welcomed two college graduates from the Venture for America fellowship program to work full-time at NOLABA for the next two years.

Vanderbilt graduate Thomas Krumins and Columbia graduate Sally Lindsay arrived in New Orleans in August and will work on NOLABA’s business development team to start their professional careers. 

Krumins is working closely with NOLABA and the City of New Orleans on program development and strategy, particularly supporting NOLABA’s development of a business model for a startup company employing returning citizens and other hard-to-employ individuals.

“Our goal is to go in and find ways to clean vacant lots and use that to generate opportunities for new tenants to move in, new buildings and businesses to sprout up and continue to build on what we already have,” he said. “By connecting individuals like the current and former prison population with opportunities to build up the city they love, we’re giving them a chance to do the same for themselves.”

Lindsay is starting her fellowship by working on NOLABA’s Bioinnovation & Health Services initiatives.

“This is an incredible opportunity to merge my passion for doing urban work with a really innovative and vibrant community,” Lindsay said of working at NOLABA. “I also love that this job empowers me to meet so many different community members and stakeholders and work to address their needs each and every day.”

Venture for America was founded in 2011 to pair smart, ambitious college graduates with startup opportunities in 18 U.S. cities, and NOLABA is one of 18 New Orleans companies currently hosting VFA fellows.

“We are thrilled to have Thomas and Sally join our team through the outstanding VFA program,” said NOLABA President & CEO Quentin L. Messer Jr. “We can’t wait to see how they will contribute to our tireless efforts to provide economic security for all New Orleanians.”

NOLABA also brought on board this summer corporate social responsibility expert Agnese Alksne for a four-month fellowship through the Community Solutions Program, a professional development program for global community leaders. Fellows work with nonprofit organizations or government agencies to design and implement follow-on projects in their home countries.

Alksne comes to New Orleans from Latvia, where she founded the nonprofit organization Corporate Social Responsibility Platform of Latvia (CSR Latvia). She is also a published author in “Sustainability Reporting in Central and Eastern European Companies.”

“I am looking forward to understanding the business environment and community issues that are impacting business development in New Orleans, meeting potential cooperation partners and bringing back home new ideas and projects,” Alksne said.