In March 2025, Teaching Cleveland sponsored a private screening of a soon-to-be released film, Lost and Found in Cleveland. First – make a note on your calendar to head to theaters in the first week of November, when the film will be released in theaters nationally.
Secondly, in order to make that event happen, Teaching Cleveland connected with both of the filmmakers, Marisa Guterman and Keith Gerchak, through Jeffrey Stern, a New York City native who made Cleveland his home a few years ago. Stern is committed to nurturing a culture of innovation and entrepreneurship in his adopted hometown. In addition to being a principal of the O.H.I.O. Fund, he hosts the podcast Lay of the Land, which features stories of entrepreneurship, startups, and builders in Cleveland and Northeast Ohio.
What inspires you about the guests you have on the podcast?
I am inspired most by my guests’ ambition and willingness to take on challenges that most would avoid. Entrepreneurship is such a humbling endeavor — the rejection, the uncertainty, the long odds — yet these entrepreneurs persist, trying to solve problems that matter to them, and ultimately to the rest of society.
What’s remarkable is how often their motivations trace back to a deep curiosity, a personal problem they’ve lived through, and a deep-rooted optimism associated with a vision of a better future. Despite working in different industries, so many of their struggles and lessons overlap, and each conversation leaves me with a new perspective on resilience, creativity, and the culture it takes to build something enduring.
You came to Cleveland from Manhattan. What about Cleveland motivated you to try to foster a culture of innovation here?
When I first came to Cleveland, what struck me was both its history and its potential. This is a place that once led the world in oil, steel, rubber, and aerospace. Entire industries that shaped the modern economy were born and scaled here. That industrial DNA hasn’t gone away, its latent potential just needs to be tapped into again.
I felt like Cleveland — and Ohio more broadly — was on the cusp of another transformation that could tap into that potential. What motivated me was the sense that if I could play even a small role in connecting builders, investors, and community leaders, we could accelerate that next chapter and reimagine what the region is capable of.
What do you hope for with the podcast?
I’ve always hoped that, at its best, Lay of the Land is a platform that helps weave the local entrepreneurial community together. Beyond the podcast itself, the most fulfilling part has been seeing the ripple effects: introductions turning into companies, hires, funding, friendships, and collaborations. It has reinforced my belief that business is about people and relationships, and what makes this work meaningful is being able to highlight and connect those people in Northeast Ohio who are quietly shaping its future.
If listeners come away with a little inspiration and maybe a few new connections, then I feel like the show has done its job.
