Start Fort Wayne Names First Executive Director

Ladig founded her first business at 18.

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Entrepreneurial nonprofit Start Fort Wayne has hired Rhonda Ladig as its first executive director. The organization aims to help northeast Indiana entrepreneurs through networking, coworking and training opportunities.

Start Fort Wayne says Ladig founded her first business at 18, and sold it five years later to help put herself through college. She holds degrees from Indiana Tech and Indiana University.

The organization launched in 2015, and was previously entirely volunteer-run. Co-founder and Board President Dave Sanders says hiring an executive director will help the group "build a sustainable and growing organization that will serve northeast Indiana for decades to come."

The group’s programs and resources include the Atrium, a downtown coworking space, and a weekly networking event for local entrepreneurs to meet and present their startups. It has also hosted events including the Rocket Academy, a coding and robotics event for at-risk youth, and Tech Tour 2016, where prominent entrepreneur and investor Paul Singh judged pitches and met with investors and companies.