CLEAR TOMORROW KC PRESENTS

THE BUSINESS OF SECOND CHANCES

Back the next business.
Not the past.

Help 15–20 justice-impacted entrepreneurs build businesses, create income, and open new possibilities for their families.

FUND THE FIRST 15 FOUNDERS

OUR GOAL: $20,000

15–20

FOUNDERS

8

WEEKS

$5,000

LAUNCH CAPITAL

1

PITCH DAY

THE SENTENCE ENDED. THE BARRIERS DID NOT.

We tell people to rebuild their lives—and then block nearly every road forward.

People returning home from incarceration are expected to find work, secure housing, support their children, and become financially stable.

But a criminal record can continue to close doors long after the legal sentence has ended. Employers say no. Housing applications are denied. Financing remains out of reach. Skills and ambition are overlooked because of a past that cannot be changed.

Clear Path Enterprise Academy creates another road: ownership.

A record may limit where someone is hired.
It should not limit what they can build.

WHY I BUILT THIS

I know what it means to need a real chance.

My name is Johnny Waller Jr., founder and CEO of Clear Tomorrow KC. Before I became an entrepreneur, nonprofit leader, college graduate, and doctoral student, my life was shaped by homelessness, gang involvement, incarceration, and the lifelong barriers of a criminal record.

I was not short on potential. I was short on pathways—and on people willing to see beyond my past.

Education helped me understand what was possible. Entrepreneurship helped me create opportunity when traditional systems would not give me one. Leadership allowed me to turn what I survived into something that could help others.

“I escaped the darkness of my nightmares by following the lights of my dreams.”

Clear Path Enterprise Academy is how we help others begin building a future their families can believe in.

A smiling father holding his smiling daughter

OPPORTUNITY BECOMES LEGACY

When one person gains a real opportunity, an entire family can move forward.

A successful business can create income, strengthen housing stability, support children, employ other people, and change what the next generation believes is possible.

FROM IDEA TO ENTERPRISE

More than a business class. A launchpad.

Clear Path Enterprise Academy is an eight-week, trauma-informed accelerator for justice-impacted people who are ready to transform an idea, skill, or side hustle into a legitimate business.

The inaugural cohort will meet live online from October 8 through November 19, 2026, followed by a public Pitch Day and Graduation on December 3, 2026.

From Possibility to Ownership

1 OWN THE VISION

Identify strengths and move from survival thinking toward ownership and possibility.

2 BUILD THE BUSINESS

Develop the idea, understand the customer, and create a workable business model.

3 MAKE IT LEGITIMATE

Understand LLCs, EINs, business banking, licensing, insurance, taxes, and compliance.

4 LEARN THE NUMBERS

Strengthen personal and business finances through required Pathway Financial coaching.

5 FIND THE CUSTOMER

Develop practical skills in branding, marketing, sales, and revenue generation.

6 PITCH WHAT COMES NEXT

Present the business and compete for startup capital at Pitch Day.

TRAINING OPENS THE DOOR. CAPITAL HELPS THEM WALK THROUGH IT.

The $5,000 Business Launch Fund

Participants will compete for four accountable startup investments after completing the academy, required financial coaching, and business-planning requirements.

$2,500

First Award

$1,500

Second Award

$750

Third Award

$250

Fourth Award

OUR CAMPAIGN GOAL

What $20,000 will make possible

This campaign will fund startup awards and the complete founder experience—from the first class through Pitch Day and continued accountability after graduation.

$5,000

Business Launch Fund

Direct startup awards for graduates ready to put their plans into action.

$5,000

Training and Instruction

Live instruction, curriculum, guest expertise, financial coaching, and founder guidance.

$5,000

Founder Tools and Support

Workbooks, startup guidance, technology, business-development tools, and wraparound support.

$5,000

Pitch Day and What Comes Next

Pitch Day, graduation, professional storytelling, alumni coaching, and continued accountability.

BUILD THE PATH BEYOND ONE COHORT

Become a Clear Path Builder

A one-time gift helps us launch the first cohort. A monthly gift helps ensure the opportunity continues for the founders who come next.

Monthly donors provide dependable support for ongoing coaching, business-development tools, future cohorts, alumni accountability, and the unexpected needs that can stand between a promising idea and a successful launch.

When donating, select the monthly giving option to join our community of Clear Path Builders.

Your monthly commitment helps turn a pilot program into a lasting pathway to ownership.

COMMUNITY-POWERED

A partnership built around possibility

Clear Tomorrow KC leads the academy. Kansas City Municipal Court serves as a referral and strategic partner, while Beyond the Bench supports fundraising and community sponsorship.

THIS IS YOUR INVITATION

Do not just give someone a second chance.
Help them build one.

Your contribution can help transform lived experience into leadership, an idea into income, and a closed door into a business someone owns.

FUND THE FIRST 15 FOUNDERS

Every gift moves a founder—and a family—closer to what comes next.

CLEAR TOMORROW KC
Real Chances, Brighter Tomorrows.

The Business of Second Chances

Help justice-impacted entrepreneurs move from survival to stability through business ownership.

Team Members