My Idea: Social entrepreneurship support as a part of the National Service Plan

by Nathaniel Whittemore · 2008-11-24 11:05:00 UTC
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My big Idea for Change in America involves incorporating social entrepreneurship support into the National Service Plan.

The idea behind the national service plan is to instill a sense of higher, common purpose among young people, while at the same time using the incredible brainpower of a generation to tackle some of societies toughest problem. From the front lines of the Millennial Generation, I can say with confidence that any plan aimed at harnessing our best talents will have to incorpoate support for student social entrepreneurs at its very core. Examples like the Center for Global Engagement, GlobeMed, campusCatalyst, Nourish International, the Manna Project International, Genocide Intervention Network, FaceAids, Student Movement for Real Change, and more testify to how the undergraduate experience can, with the right supports, be a launching pad for social innovation.

So what would this mean practically?

  • Social venture funding
    • There should be a student social venture fund embedded in in the National Service Plan that allows undergraduate social entrepreneurs to apply their projects for funding in order to satisfy service requirements. It doesn't have to be a lot, just enough to make it a real option for people coming out of school.

  • Mentorship and pro-bono support

    • We should connect generations by having succesful entrepreneurs, business people, and nonprofit leaders in a mentorship core that could help new organizations move from "intention" to "impact." This group should also be willing to provide basic services - such as helping student innovators fill out their 501(c)3 applications for tax-exempt status - pro-bono.

  • Ongoing training

    • This shouldn't be just limited to social entrepreneurs in the program, but there should be a customized curriculum including things like mission development, measurement and impact assessment, communication, fundraising and development, business planning, etc.

What do you think? Read more about the idea here.

Nathaniel Whittemore is the founder of Assetmap. Previously he was the founding director of the Northwestern University Center for Global Engagement.
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