Graduating Purdue senior channels entrepreneurial mindset to propel growth, success in her hometown

In the backyard of her grandparents’ home in Gary, Indiana, a young Emmani Ellis’ mind races as she tinkers with discarded gutters, wood scraps and other remnants of her family’s past real estate projects. She uses her imagination as a guide to transform the broken pieces into creative solutions like seesaws and irrigation systems. To some, the items are clutter, but to Ellis, they’re a playground for her entrepreneurial mind and spirit — a starting point for the years of innovation that would soon follow.

Before she was a Purdue senior double-majoring in mechatronics engineering technology and robotics engineering technology in the Purdue Polytechnic Institute, Ellis was a high school student using money generated from her mobile device repair business — Ramani Repair — to fuel up the car she’d just received a license to drive. Her peers would hand over their broken laptops, cellphones, tablets and other electronics to Ellis at school, and she’d mend them after school or during homeroom, taking pride in her affordable, accessible and self-taught woman-led business. 

Now gearing up to walk across the stage during Purdue’s Winter 2023 Commencement ceremonies, Ellis is brimming with excitement for the possibilities that lie ahead. But her future isn’t the only thing on her mind. Ellis is dreaming up ways she can use her Purdue degrees and entrepreneurship certificate to enrich her hometown of Gary and the lives of those in it through the collective efforts of her two companies — IronWorkz and No Limit Living.

The founders of IronWorkz. From left: Alex Termini, Faith Spencer and Emmani Ellis. (Photo provided) Download image

“Growing up, I’ve had such a great support system, but I’ve watched people near me not succeed as well as I have,” Ellis says. “My peers aren’t less than me; they just had less access than me. I want to be a part of the difference. I want to help people take their next step in life. I recognized that I am so fortunate, and I am passionate about wanting this fortune for other people.”

Founded in January by Ellis, Purdue Northwest student Alex Termini and Purdue alumna Faith Spencer, IronWorkz is a business incubator that strives to support and stabilize entrepreneurship and youth success in northwest Indiana. The name references Gary’s years as a booming steel city full of opportunity and growth — a reminder of the past that empowers the trio to build a better future.

By hosting workshops; speaker series; and other local gatherings focusing on financial literacy, mindset and mental health, and community engagement, Ellis and her IronWorkz team aim to become a driver of economic development, entrepreneurship and growth in the city they all hail from. During its first full summer of programming, IronWorkz hosted six workshops, reaching over 200 individuals in the community. Bounce houses, inflatable ax-throwing, and food and business vendors took center stage at the organization’s back-to-school bash, where IronWorkz used its funding to hand out a choice of $25 school uniform vouchers or backpacks to more than 100 local students.

“So many people in Gary have been desperately waiting for something like this to come, but few in my generation have been willing to take that step,” Ellis says. “Most who believe in the city are older, and it’s kind of revolutionary for our community that we’re young and ready to give back. We see ourselves as being part of the catalyst for the revitalization of Gary.”

For now, the team plans to foster connections with local leaders, organizations and community members by hosting pop-up events, but Ellis and her peers have big goals on the horizon. They plan to find space in the city to create a co-working site for aspiring entrepreneurs and leaders, a venue that individuals and groups can rent out for events, and a roller rink where community members of all ages can gather and enjoy.

There is currently a lack of these spaces in Gary, but that won’t stop IronWorkz from using its ever-growing resources to confidently carry out its mission and inch closer to the prosperous future its founders envision for the city.

“We see businesses coming back,” Ellis says. “We see Broadway full of lively businesses, coffee shops and places where people can meet up, entertain themselves and grab something to eat. We see beautiful homes and new apartment complexes replacing dilapidated housing. We see the city flourishing, looking lively and being economically stable.”

IronWorkz engages with local residents and aspiring entrepreneurs by hosting community events where others can share their dreams and journeys for their own businesses. (Photo provided) Download image

That vision is one step closer to reality thanks to Ellis’ own nonprofit venture, No Limit Living, a real estate investment firm dedicated to acquiring, rehabilitating and selling housing properties in Gary. While she strives to change the visual narrative and drive homeownership and economic stability in her hometown, Ellis also yearns to use funds generated by the venture to support mentorship programs for underserved communities in northwest Indiana.

After successfully flipping her first home in the fall of 2022, Ellis doubled down, eager to show others in the community that there are no limits to leading a better life. As she waits to begin gutting and rehabilitating several local abandoned properties, she’s refining her organization’s latest offering — real estate drone photography. And thanks to the innovation and expertise of undergraduate students in The Data Mine, Purdue’s learning community for students preparing for a data-driven workforce, Ellis, who participated as a corporate partner this year, will soon launch a brand-new website for the venture.

Ellis says Purdue has played a key role in her success. It’s where she fine-tuned her leadership abilities and entrepreneurial mindset, giving way to a nomination for TechPoint’s 2023 Student Entrepreneur of the Year Award and accolades like the 2023 Black Engineer of the Year Student Leadership Award. It’s where she fostered invaluable connections that opened doors for her future. And it’s where she found the confidence to pursue her passion. 

“My network of people is astronomical because I have attended this university,” Ellis says. “I know how to communicate better, and I am very analytical with my engineering degrees. Overall, I am very well-rounded and very well-connected, but I think one of the biggest ways that Purdue has helped is that it’s allowed me to connect with some awesome people and has given me the confidence to do so.”

Confidence isn’t Ellis’ sole driver; it’s paired with the effects she’s already witnessing from her efforts. After accepting her diploma in Purdue’s Elliott Hall of Music, she’ll return home, ready to get to work. 

“It’s been empowering to be a beacon of hope in my community,” Ellis says. “I feel like I’m actually called to the impact work that I’m doing, and if I’m going to do that, now is the time. I’m just excited for the radical growth that’s about to happen in Gary; I can feel it coming.”