Ellen F. Golden

Last updated
Ellen F. Golden
Born
Ellen Frances Golden

(1946-10-08) October 8, 1946 (age 77)
EducationB.A. art history, Barnard College (1968)
M.A. public policy and management, University of Southern Maine (1994)
OccupationNonprofit executive
Years active1978–2015
Employer(s)Coastal Enterprises, Inc.
SpouseDuane Alan Paluska
Parent(s)Gerald and Rose Golden
Awards Maine Women's Hall of Fame (2015)

Ellen Frances Golden (born October 8, 1946) is an American nonprofit executive specializing in micro-enterprise and women's business development.[ citation needed ] She was senior vice president of Coastal Enterprises, Inc. of Wiscasset, Maine, where she directed the Women's Business Center and CEI Investment Notes. She has testified before congressional committees on women's entrepreneurship and micro-enterprise development, and has sat on the boards of policy-making groups in these fields. She was inducted into the Maine Women's Hall of Fame in 2015.

Contents

Early life and education

Ellen Frances Golden was born in Washington, D.C., to Gerald and Rose Golden. She completed her bachelor's degree in art history at Barnard College, and earned her master's degree in public policy and management at the University of Southern Maine. [1]

Career

In 1978 Golden joined Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI) of Wiscasset, Maine, a nonprofit community economic development corporation that finances and supports small businesses and micro-enterprises created by and employing low-income residents of Maine. [2] Starting as communications coordinator, she advanced to operations manager, project developer, senior program officer, senior development officer, and senior vice president. [3] She directed the CEI Women's Business Center, established with seed funding from the United States Small Business Administration, [4] [5] which offers "business counseling, training, and access to financing" for women entrepreneurs, [6] and was managing director of CEI Investment Notes, which furnishes loans for small businesses. [7]

In 1986 she received a $15,000 grant from the Maine Bureau of Vocational Education to survey women business owners across the state and evaluate their needs. [8] This led to the establishment of a series of seminars for women in business the following year, with the participation of Maine's technical college system. [4] [9] The survey also led to the 2007 publication of Telling Their Stories: Women Business Owners in Western Maine, a 62-page pamphlet detailing the history of businesses started by women entrepreneurs in the state. [10] In 2004 Golden was one of six women selected by Women Impacting Public Policy to query United States presidential candidate John Kerry on the subject of women in business during a national conference call heard by 2,000 female entrepreneurs. [11]

In her role as managing director of CEI Investment Notes, Inc., Golden organized investor financing in small businesses such as a restaurant venture by an Iraqi refugee couple, and farming operations for young people. [7] [12]

Golden retired in December 2015 after 37 years at Coastal Enterprises. [3]

Other activities

In 1994 Golden founded MicroNet, a Maine-based micro-enterprise association, "to share best practices, coordinate services, develop policy and train practitioners across New England in microenterprise development". [4]

Memberships

She has served on the board of directors of the Women's Development Institute in Augusta, the Women's Business Development Corporation of Bangor, and the Maine Women's Lobby. She was commissioner of the Maine Commission for Women from 1988 to 1992.[ citation needed ]

She is a founding board member of the Maine Women's Policy Center. [13] She was a member of the board of trustees of Maine Initiatives from 1994 to 2000, and also served as president of that board. [14] She sat on the board of directors of the Association for Enterprise Opportunity of Chicago from 1992 to 1996 and 1997 to 2000, and has chaired the Association of Business Women's Business Centers since 1998.[ citation needed ]

Awards and honors

The United States Small Business Administration honored Golden as Women Business Advocate for Maine in 1987, Minority Business Advocate for Maine in 1994, and Minority Business Advocate for Maine and Region I in 2003.[ citation needed ] She received the 20th Anniversary Star Award from the Maine Centers for Women, Work and Community. [4] She was inducted into the Maine Women's Hall of Fame in 2015. [4]

Personal life

In June 1983, she married Duane Alan Paluska, a custom furniture maker and contemporary artist. [15] [16] They reside in Woolwich, Maine. [7] [17]

Related Research Articles

Geraldine Laybourne is an American entrepreneur and former TV executive. She worked at Nickelodeon from 1980 until 1996, when she became the president of Disney-ABC Cable Networks. She is also the co-founder of Oxygen Media and a tech startup called Katapult. In 2020, she was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame.

A micro-enterprise is generally defined as a small business employing nine people or fewer, and having a balance sheet or turnover less than a certain amount. The terms microenterprise and microbusiness have the same meaning, though traditionally when referring to a small business financed by microcredit the term microenterprise is often used. Similarly, when referring to a small, usually legal business that is not financed by microcredit, the term microbusiness is often used. Internationally, most microenterprises are family businesses employing one or two persons. Most microenterprise owners are primarily interested in earning a living to support themselves and their families. They only grow the business when something in their lives changes and they need to generate a larger income. According to information found on the Census.gov website, microenterprises make up 95% of the 28 million US companies tracked by the census.

Jeannette H. Lee is a Korean–American entrepreneur based in Washington, D.C., and later in Kansas City, Missouri. Lee was also known for several years under the married name Jeannette Lee White.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mildred Robbins Leet</span> American entrepreneur and philanthropist

Mildred Robbins Leet was an American entrepreneur and philanthropist. She was a co-founder and Chair Emerita of the Board of Directors of Trickle Up, a New York–based international non-governmental organization dedicated to alleviating poverty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises</span> Government of India Ministry

The Ministry of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises is the ministry in the Government of India. It is the apex executive body for the formulation and administration of rules, regulations and laws relating to micro, small and medium enterprises in India. The Minister of Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises is Jitan Ram Manjhi.

Janice Bryant Howroyd is an entrepreneur, businesswoman, and author. She is founder and chief executive officer of The ActOne Group, the largest privately held, minority-woman-owned personnel company founded in the U.S. Howroyd is the first African-American woman to build and own a billion dollar company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Karen Mills</span> US businesswoman and administrator

Karen Gordon Mills is an American businessperson and former government official who served as the 23rd Administrator of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA). She was nominated by President-elect Barack Obama on December 19, 2008, confirmed unanimously by the Senate on April 2, 2009, and sworn in on April 6, 2009. During her tenure, her office was elevated to the rank of Cabinet-level officer, expanding her power on policy decisions and granting her inclusion in the President's cabinet meetings. On February 11, 2013, she announced her resignation as Administrator and left the post on September 1, 2013.

Rebecca Adamson is an American businessperson and advocate. She is former director, former president, and founder of First Nations Development Institute and the founder of First Peoples Worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maine Women's Hall of Fame</span>

The Maine Women's Hall of Fame was created in 1990 to honor the achievements of women associated with the U.S. state of Maine. The induction ceremonies are held each year during March, designated as Women's History Month. Nominees are chosen by the public via an online nomination form. The University of Maine at Augusta displays the hall of fame in its Bennett D. Katz Library, and also hosts the hall of fame online at the university's website. The nomination form lists three criteria for eligibility:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Richard Zuschlag</span> American businessman (1948–2024)

Richard Emery Zuschlag was an American businessman who was the chairman and chief executive officer of Acadian Ambulance Service, which he co-founded in 1971, in Lafayette, Louisiana. Zuschlag previously worked at the Greenville Broadcasting Company and Westinghouse Electric Space and Defense Center. Prior to his death, he was the only one of the three co-founders of Acadian Ambulance who remained with the company, which is best known for its advanced technologies in medical care and communications.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eloise Vitelli</span> American politician

Eloise A. Vitelli is the majority leader of the Maine Senate. She is a Democrat representing Senate District 24, which serves all of Sagadahoc County and the adjacent town of Dresden, Maine in Lincoln County. Vitelli was first elected to the Maine Senate in a 2013 special election, but lost her re-election bid in 2014. She was re-elected in 2016, 2018, 2020, and 2022. Vitelli began working as an entrepreneurship trainer in the early 1980s and was the director of program and policy for New Ventures Maine for 38 years. She became the Assistant Senate Majority Leader in December 2020, and Majority Leader in February 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Terry Neese</span> American businesswoman and political candidate (born 1946)

Terry Neese is an American businesswoman and politician. A member of the Republican Party, she was the first woman nominated by a major political party for the office of Lieutenant Governor of Oklahoma, in 1990; in 2020 she was a candidate for the Republican nomination in Oklahoma's 5th congressional district.

Patricia M. Collins was an American civic leader and politician who served as the mayor of Caribou, Maine from 1981 to 1982. She has chaired numerous local and state boards and organizations, including the Caribou School Board, the Maine Committee for Judicial Responsibility and Disability, Catholic Charities Maine, and the University of Maine Board of Trustees. She was inducted into the Maine Women's Hall of Fame in 2005.

Gilda E. Nardone is an American women's employment advocate and nonprofit director. She is the executive director of New Ventures Maine, a career counseling and employment development program for middle-aged and older women who have been thrust into the role of family breadwinner due to the death or disability of a spouse, divorce, or separation. Nardone has been one of the directors of the organization, headquartered at the University of Maine at Augusta, since its inception as the Maine Displaced Homemakers Program in 1978. She was inducted into the Maine Women's Hall of Fame in 1991.

Laurie Gagnon Lachance is an American economist and college administrator. Since 2012, she has been the president of Thomas College in Waterville, Maine, and is the first woman to fill that post. She was previously the first woman Maine State Economist and the first woman president of the Maine Development Foundation. She was inducted into the Maine Women's Hall of Fame in 2014.

Caroline Doris Gentile was an American academic and physical education instructor. The longest-serving faculty member of the University of Maine at Presque Isle, she joined the staff in 1946 and developed the curriculum for the physical education department. She continued as a classroom instructor until her retirement in 2005. She also made the largest-ever gift to the university, a $500,000 donation toward the establishment of a health and physical education complex which was named in her honor. She was inducted into the Maine Women's Hall of Fame in 2000 and the Maine Sports Legends Hall of Honors in 2003.

Patricia E. "Pat" Ryan is a human rights and women's rights advocate. She served as executive director of the Maine Human Rights Commission, a state agency tasked with enforcement of Maine's anti-discrimination laws, for over three decades. Prior to that, she chaired the Maine Commission for Women and the Maine State Personnel Board. She was a co-founder of the Maine Women's Lobby. She was inducted into the Maine Women's Hall of Fame in 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Linda Smith Dyer</span> American activist

Linda Smith Dyer was an American lawyer, lobbyist, and women's rights activist. After a two-decade legal career, she entered public service as deputy commissioner of the Maine Department of Agriculture. She co-founded the Maine Women's Lobby and was active in the effort to ratify the Equal Rights Amendment in Maine. A member on numerous boards and committees, she was a past president of the Maine State Bar Association and the Family Planning Association of Maine. She was inducted into the Maine Women's Hall of Fame in 2001, a few months before her death.

Karen Heck is an American community activist, women's rights activist, non-profit administrator, and politician. She was Mayor of Waterville, Maine from 2012 to 2014. She was inducted into the Maine Women's Hall of Fame in 2008.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laura Fortman</span> American government employee, non-profit executive and womens rights activist

Laura A. Fortman is an American government employee, non-profit executive, and women's rights activist. Since 2013 she has served as deputy administrator of the Wage and Hour Division at the United States Department of Labor in Washington, D.C. Previously she was commissioner of the Maine Department of Labor, and executive director of the Frances Perkins Center, the Maine Women's Lobby, and the Sexual Assault Crisis and Support Center of Augusta. She was inducted into the Maine Women's Hall of Fame in 2007.

References

  1. "Ellen Golden". LinkedIn. 2017. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
  2. "Testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives Banking and Financial Services Committee". United States House Committee on Financial Services. 26 May 1999. Retrieved 20 June 2016.
  3. 1 2 "Impact Investing: GreenMoney Journal Dialogue Featuring Ron Phillips and Ellen Golden (press release)". Coastal Enterprises, Inc. 5 January 2016. Retrieved 21 June 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 "Maine Women's Hall of Fame – Honorees: Ellen F. Golden". University of Maine at Augusta. 2016. Archived from the original on 6 March 2016. Retrieved 20 June 2016.
  5. "FY 2005 Budget: Small Business Administration: Ellen Golden". Federal Document Clearing House. 12 February 2004. Archived from the original on 11 September 2016. Retrieved 20 June 2016 via HighBeam.
  6. Swarz, Brian (25 October 2000). "Wiscasset-based Women's Business Center assists entrepreneurs". Bangor Daily News . p. W1.
  7. 1 2 3 "Transcription of Coastal Enterprises Inc. #206". Love Maine Radio. 23 August 2015. Retrieved 20 June 2016.
  8. Albert, Ursula (14 April 1986). "Women hope to share success". Lewiston Journal . p. C1.
  9. Deveau, Sharon (12 October 1987). "Seminar aims to boost self-esteem". Lewiston Journal. p. 3A.
  10. Genzinger, Neil (16 May 2007). "From Maine, Small Business Stories to Inspire". The New York Times . Retrieved 20 June 2016.
  11. "Buzzing Kerry". Sun Journal. 24 May 2004. p. A3.
  12. McCarthy, James (1 April 2013). "CEI loan fund seeks 'socially conscious' investors". Mainebiz. Retrieved 19 June 2016.
  13. "CEI's Ellen Golden Inducted into the Maine Women's Hall of Fame (press release)". Coastal Enterprises, Inc. 2016. Retrieved 20 June 2016.
  14. "Ellen Golden – Board President". Maine Initiatives. 2017. Retrieved 27 April 2017.
  15. "Class Knox: 1958". Knox Magazine. 99 (2): 50. Fall 2015.
  16. Beem, Edgar Allen (30 November 2003). "Sitting Pretty". The Boston Globe . Retrieved 20 June 2016.
  17. "Ellen Golden". Maine Initiatives. 2016. Retrieved 19 June 2016.