Healing a community requires healing its citizens, and nowhere can healing do more immediate good than with children. Dr. Lateshia伍德利 has dedicated her life to helping children within underserved school systems. Her focus is on strengthening the mental and emotional health of students, which she believes serves as the foundation of community-wide healing.

“I really and truly decided to dedicate my life to making a difference in the lives of kids who had some of the same struggles I did growing up,博士说。. 伍德利. “So, 在过去的二十年里, that's the work that I've been doing: from being a teacher, 给咨询师, 致校长, all the way to assistant superintendent.”

Dr. 伍德利’s background drove her to build her business: 动态成就解决方案， LLC (das). DAS is a counseling and educational consulting firm that works to transform communities that have historically been promised investment but might not have seen that investment materialize meaningfully. She works with educational institutions to combat mental health stigmas and improve the overall well-being of the communities in which they exist.

“I decided after working as an assistant superintendent and seeing some of the concerns in the communities that I was a part of, that I wanted to have a greater impact and a greater reach,她解释道. 

Dr. 伍德利 had a vision and clients. All she needed were the funds to expand her physical space and grow her mission in East Point. She learned about the 亚特兰大商业开放基金 from Invest Atlanta and applied for a low-interest loan through the 亚特兰大复苏贷款计划.

的 亚特兰大商业开放基金 is designed to help small business owners in Atlanta build wealth by investing in assets such as commercial space, 设备与技术. It is supported by a generous donation of $20 million from 富国银行(Wells Fargo) to help Atlanta businesses impacted by the pandemic recover.

“我们知道这很困难, more difficult for entrepreneurs of color to get funding in this financial space,” Dr. 伍德利说. ”,因此, Invest Atlanta provides this avenue to make sure that we have an equal playing field and we're able to be competitors in this global marketplace.”. She says being approved for this loan means she has the funds she needs to keep her business moving forward. 

“If [the Open for Business Fund] didn't come through for our funds, I don't see how we would be able to continue the work that we've been doing. This has had such a great impact in the community,” she says.

的 funding will allow her to create a center of operations, 事件空间, a community garden and an individual counseling office. 你可以了解更多 动态成就解决方案 and the services provided by visiting their website.