Stories of Technology, Innovation, & Entrepreneurship in the Southeast

Entrepreneurship isn’t just about starting businesses – It’s about changing lives, neighborhoods, and mindsets.

That’s the vision behind Evergreen, a new Community Development Corporation, founded by Damon Rawls.

In addition to his public service as a Knox County Commissioner for District One, managing the Knoxville Black Business Directory, and teaching at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville (UTK), Rawls is a serial entrepreneur.

We sat down with Rawls to discuss his latest venture, which is focused on the next generation.

“Low-income neighborhoods face significant barriers to economic growth and development,” Rawls said. “I see entrepreneurship as a pathway out of poverty. I started Evergreen to change those mindsets.”

Over the summer, Rawls launched Evergreen with a pair of weeklong summer camps designed for middle and high school students. 

The camps introduced young people to the fundamentals of entrepreneurship and culminated in pitch presentations, giving students a chance to present their business ideas and build confidence in public speaking.

“We saw some cool concepts – from a spike shoe company for track athletes to a boutique that combats racism, and even a 3D printed shoe with soft soles,” Rawls said. “Students’ minds are full of great ideas.”

The curriculum, originally developed in partnership with the City of Knoxville and Empower Knox, is designed to be flexible. While it typically spans six weeks, it can be adapted to fit a six-day crash course or a longer, six-month program.

Rawls’ main focus is on serving students from low-income zip codes. This fall, the Evergreen program will be implemented at Austin-East High School and Knox Prep.

I want these students to gain the skills that entrepreneurship provides,” Rawls said. “It will allow them to go to college with purpose and focus or launch something of their own.

Rawls speaks from experience. For more than a decade, he owned and operated the Knoxville franchise of Jani-King, the world’s largest commercial cleaning company. After selling the business in 2018, he began working full-time as a business consultant.

“It changed my life,” he said. “Entrepreneurship is how you change neighborhoods, mindsets, and economic status.”

Now, Rawls is assembling a board for Evergreen and kicking off a fundraising campaign to expand the program. His goal is to bring entrepreneurship education to more schools, after-school programs, clubs, and community camps.

“We aren’t making a profit off of this. We need funds to help buy student lunches for these day-long sessions,” he said. “We’d also love to help students cover the cost of starting their business — whether that’s forming an LLC, getting a business license, or buying a domain name.”

He hopes to one day host student pitch competitions at the high school level and offer a monetary incentive for the winner(s). 

“We want Evergreen to be the hub for youth entrepreneurs in Knoxville,” he said. 

Find out more about Evergreen Community Development Corporation.

Connect with Damon Rawls.

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