Board Spotlight: Jordan Colton Helps Connect Ideas, People, and Opportunity

Image caption: Jordan Colton, Business Support Program Manager at Greater Iowa City, Inc., brings experience connecting entrepreneurs with resources and opportunities to the Junior Achievement of Eastern Iowa Board of Directors.

For entrepreneurs, moving an idea forward often starts with a connection—to a resource, an experienced business owner, or someone willing to listen.

Helping people make those connections is central to Jordan Colton’s work. As Business Support Program Manager at Greater Iowa City, Inc., Jordan works with local businesses and entrepreneurs to help them find resources, exchange ideas, and build relationships.

As a member of the Junior Achievement of Eastern Iowa Corridor Community Impact Board, Jordan brings that experience to an organization helping students discover opportunities for their own futures.

Supporting the People Behind Local Businesses

Jordan oversees the Business Resource Center at Greater Iowa City, Inc., and leads 1 Million Cups Iowa City, a program that gives entrepreneurs a place to share what they are building and connect with people who want to see them succeed.

The work puts Jordan in regular contact with people developing ideas, navigating challenges, and taking the next steps in their business journeys.

It also highlights the importance of a supportive community. Access to information matters, but so does having people who can offer encouragement, share experience, and help make a useful introduction.

A graduate of the University of Iowa’s Tippie College of Business, Jordan brings both a business education and experience supporting local entrepreneurs to JAEI’s board.

Connecting Entrepreneurship With Student Opportunity

There is a natural connection between Jordan’s work and Junior Achievement’s mission.

Entrepreneurs put communication, financial decision-making, creativity, and problem-solving into practice every day. Through JA experiences, students begin developing those same skills while exploring how their interests can connect with future careers.

For a student, entrepreneurship might begin with a question: What could I create? What problem could I solve? How could an idea become something useful?

Opportunities to explore those questions help students see business as something they can participate in. Meeting professionals and learning from their experiences can also make unfamiliar career paths feel more accessible.

Jordan’s experience bringing entrepreneurs and community members together offers a valuable perspective as JAEI connects education with the working world.

Strengthening the Connection Between Schools and Businesses

Junior Achievement depends on people who help bridge the distance between classroom learning and real-world experience. Board members contribute professional knowledge, community connections, and perspectives that support that work.

Jordan’s background in connecting businesses with resources adds to that shared effort. It reflects an important part of preparing students for the future: helping people discover where to turn, whom to learn from, and what steps they can take next.

JAEI is pleased to welcome Jordan to the board as we continue creating opportunities for young people to build skills, explore possibilities, and develop confidence in their futures.