$75,000 VCEDA Grant for Entrepreneurial Skills Training to Be Offered by Napoleon Hill Foundation
WISE, VA – SEPTEMBER 22, 2026 -- An up to a $75,000 grant from the Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority (VCEDA) Coalfield Workforce Development and Training Fund to be used for continued workforce development and training for high school students in the VCEDA region was closed recently for the Napoleon Hill Foundation in Wise, VA.
The funds will be used to assist with the continued development and implementation of a free online interactive course in entrepreneurial skills.
VCEDA has previously approved funding for the project, including $50,000 in November 2021, February 2023 and June 2024.
“The Napoleon Hill Foundation intends to build upon its prior successes by continuing this initiative,” said VCEDA Executive Director/General Counsel Jonathan Belcher. “Students from throughout the VCEDA region are eligible for the program which is designed to teach entrepreneurial and networking skills. Overall, the program is well-aligned with VCEDA’s successful seed capital program which encourages entrepreneurs in the region to pursue their goals of starting and maintaining small businesses and creating jobs.”
The course offered through the foundation, “Keys to Success,” is comprised of a series of 17 modules which students enrolled in the course can complete at their own pace and based on their own schedules. They also earn three hours of college credit upon successful completion of the class.
The Napoleon Hill Foundation, currently located on the campus of the University of Virginia’s College at Wise, is a 501c3 non-profit corporation originally formed in 1962 in South Carolina.
The foundation is named after Napoleon Hill, who was born in Wise County in 1883 and who died in 1970. His books have sold millions of copies worldwide. He is best known for his self-help book “Think and Grow Rich,” which was first published in 1937. The tenets of Hill’s writings are based upon the concepts of freedom, capitalism, democracy and harmony.
“The Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority is a tremendous help to allow hundreds of local high school students to study the success principles taught by the University of Virginia/Wise,” said Don Green, Napoleon Hill executive director/CEO. “The students get three hours credit and qualify for a scholarship. The funds go a long way toward the students’ start to a college degree.”
To learn more, interested students may visit https://www.naphill.org/
About Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority and Southwest Virginia’s e-Region: The Virginia Coalfield Economic Development Authority, created by the Virginia General Assembly in 1988 to enhance and diversify the region’s economy and help create jobs, markets Southwest Virginia’s e-Region and its focus on electronic information technology, energy, education, emerging technologies, and entrepreneurship. VCEDA is a unique economic development organization that manages funds for economic development projects from a percentage of the coal and natural gas severance taxes paid by coal and natural gas companies that operate in the region. Located in southwestern Virginia, the region includes Buchanan, Dickenson, Lee, Russell, Scott, Tazewell, and Wise counties and the City of Norton. www.vceda.us or www.e-Region.org.
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PHOTO CAPTION:
VCEDA Executive Director/General Counsel Jonathan Belcher, right, presents a ceremonial check representing the up to $75,000 VCEDA grant approved for the Napoleon Hill Foundation to Don Green, executive director/CEO of the foundation. The funds will be used for continued entrepreneurial skills training through the Napoleon Hill Foundation to benefit high school students in the region.