Mayor Rahm Emanuel, Cook County Board President Toni Preckwinkle and World Business Chicago recently announced an expansion of the Chicago Anchors for a Strong Economy (CASE) program to encourage Chicago’s leading institutions to support local small businesses growth in their neighborhoods. Illinois Institute of Technology is one of the original partner anchors of the program that began last year. Over the last year, the small businesses that participated in the CASE program saw an average increase in revenue of $804,000.

CASE boasts 11 anchor institutions and expects to increase that number to 20 in 2015. CASE is a network of Chicago’s leading “anchor” institutions – hospitals, universities, cultural institutions, corporations, and others – committed to putting their purchasing power to work to accelerate growth. CASE will create economic opportunities for local suppliers by fostering strategic relationships with anchor institutions and equipping them with the necessary tools to successfully compete for contracts where needed.

Learn more about the CASE program here.