The University of Arkansas’ Greenhouse Outdoor Recreation Program has received a $1.2 million grant to expand its work supporting outdoor startups in Arkansas.
The grant, from the U.S. Economic Development Agency, is the largest in the history of the UA’s Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation, which oversees GORP. The state of Arkansas is matching the grant with an additional $1 million.
In a news release, the UA said the new GORP ARound the State initiative will support entrepreneurs in four areas that were recently designated as opportunity zones for the outdoor recreation economy: Queen Wilhelmina State Park (Mena), Petit Jean State Park (Morrilton), Pinnacle Mountain State Park (Roland) and the Delta Heritage Trail State Park (West Helena).
The program will provide startups in those areas with business development workshops, industry events and mentors. GORP will also partner with the UA law school to offer entrepreneurial law sessions to help founders with operating agreements and other business documents.
“People associate outdoor recreation with fun — and it is that,” said Phil Shellhammer, OEI’s senior director of business incubation and director of GORP. “But as an industry, it also makes up 2% of Arkansas’ GDP and creates more than 40,000 jobs. This grant and the generous match from the State of Arkansas will allow us to double down on that strength, bringing high-paying jobs, visibility and tourism dollars to the state, which will have a big ripple effect on families and communities.”
UA’s OEI will partner with other schools in the UA System — at Morrilton, Little Rock and Rich Mountain — to implement the initiatives at the state parks in those communities. OEI will team with the nonprofit Thrive Inc. for the project along the Delta Heritage Trail.
“The EDA grant is important proof of concept that a sector-specific approach to business development can attract follow-on funding from the federal government and expand across the state,” said Sarah Goforth, OEI’s executive director. “We are thrilled to take what we have learned through GORP and extend it statewide, in partnership with universities and other organizations in those regions.”
Founded through a $4.1 million grant from the Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation, GORP is a business incubator for early stage startups in the outdoor recreation industry. The UA said GORP launched with four startups in spring 2022. In the last 21 months, 25 startups have expanded their businesses through its semiannual cohort program.
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