Tag Archives | education

I Am Only One But Still I Am One…Lesson Learned.

By on February 6, 2013 in Building a Social Venture, Education, Poverty, Social Entrepreneurship, Starting the Journey, Women's Empowerment

Helen Keller once said “I am only one, but still I am one. I cannot do everything, but still I can do something; and because I cannot do everything, I will not refuse to do something that I can do”.  This has been the most challenging concept I have yet to face and accept in [...]

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Building a Revenue Model

By on December 10, 2012 in Education, Social Entrepreneurship, Youth Development

If you were a teenager living in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, how much would you pay for world-class leadership training? There’s been a lot of productive talk lately about how organizations working for social change should make their money. As a real believer in markets, particularly in their ability to spur development, I’ve [...]

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Haiti, Fierce Hope, and Social Enterprise

By on November 21, 2012 in Starting the Journey

“What the heck am I doing?” I’ve asked myself that question countless times in the year and a half since starting my own social venture.  From marketing and pricing to web design and hiring, half the time I feel like I’m just making things up as I go along and the other half of the [...]

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Social Changers: Sometimes Alone but Always in Good Company

By on November 14, 2012 in Education, Social Entrepreneurship, Starting the Journey

Recently people have given me compliments that genuinely make me feel uncomfortable. I am not doing anything that anyone else cannot do. I am no genius, I am not a doctor, nor a teacher, nor a mother. I’m just a girl trying to figure out the balance between passion, human capacity, and the needs that [...]

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Getting Your Word Out: 5 Ways to Get your Social Cause Noticed

By on November 7, 2012 in Education, Social Entrepreneurship

Once you’ve built your organization or started your Social Enterprise, you’ll need to spread the word.  This will help you not only recruit and find others, but also find donors and those willing to support your enterprise even if they won’t join it directly.  Just having people aware of the cause will make it easier [...]

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Launching a Successful Non-Profit: Four Crucial Lessons

By on November 2, 2012 in Education, Non-Profits, Social Entrepreneurship

In the 8 months it took to launch our tech non-profit, StudentDonate.com, my team and I learned a ton of critical lessons along the way.  Below are the top 4 lessons we’ve learned that will help any burgeoning or even established social entrepreneur. Your Website Needs to Rock – Face it, in the 21st century [...]

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Dignity – A Basic Human Right

By on October 29, 2012 in Building a Social Venture, Education, Social Entrepreneurship, Women's Empowerment

I recently watched an online video that criticized the way in which ‘Africa’ and ‘Africans’ are portrayed by well-intentioned charities and not for profit organizations (Binyavanga Wainaina).  I have always prided myself on being aware of the many stereotypes that exist in the world and in particu lar regarding those living in African countries. However, [...]

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An Unexpected Passion for High-Tech Social Entrepreneurship

By on October 26, 2012 in Education, Social Entrepreneurship, Starting the Journey

It started over dinner in San Francisco with an old friend named Ryan I hadn’t seen in a few years.  Somehow, the topic of the student loan debt crisis came up and while discussing it Ryan admitted he had a ton of debt from paying for his education.  Ryan’s passion was teaching and he was [...]

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Yeah, but WHY?: Quick grant tips

By on October 19, 2012 in Education, Poverty, Sector, Stories of Impact

I’ve had a long, hard journey with grant writing for MODEL26. Well, as “long” as two years can be. Despite being a great writer, I had the hardest time getting my story out on paper in the one-page letter of intent format needed for many grants. I was passionate. I knew what I was talking [...]

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Black Girls Rock! 2011

Fueled by Naivete & Idealism: My Road to Social Entrepreneurship (part 3)

By on October 12, 2012 in Starting the Journey, Stories of Impact

Going back to the drawing board basically meant going back to Google. I needed to restructure. We needed a new approach. Our mission was the same: eradicate poverty through education using university students, but how did we do that in an innovative way that could actually provide some lasting change. After a few weeks of [...]

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Fueled by Naivete & Idealism: My Road to Social Entrepreneurship (part 2)

By on October 5, 2012 in Education, Stories of Impact

So about that other story…Apparently, it can take years for organizations to gain this status. And lots of work. But the universe was working in my favor. I asked 2 friends to help with the 20+ pages of IRS paperwork. We met at the Student Learning Center, pulled some numbers out of the air, filled [...]

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Fueled by Naivete & Idealism: My Road to Social Entrepreneurship (Part 1)

By on September 28, 2012 in Social Entrepreneurship, Starting the Journey

It was 1:00am on the second day of Spring Break 2010 when I decided to create “Bookbags With the Basics.” For about two years (after seeing Invisible Children for the second time) I had been trying to find my place in the world of philanthropy. I’d joined Habitat for Humanity and Amnesty International chapters at the [...]

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How Inspiring My Daughters Inspired Me to Create Change

By on September 10, 2012 in Social Entrepreneurship, Stories of Impact

Even as a young child, I was passionate about making the world a better place. Whether it was organizing bike riding marathons with friends to raise money for the World Wildlife Fund or standing up for neighbourhood friends who were bullied, Ialways felt a strong desire to help those in need. That passion stayed with [...]

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Why I Left Washington Politics for Social Enterprise

By on August 29, 2012 in Featured, Social Entrepreneurship, Starting the Journey

Three years ago, I never would have imagined that today I would be working with a social enterprise in India. From a young age, I was instilled with a strong sense of social justice, a passion for international affairs, and a desire to serve my community and country. I was highly influenced by my pro-bono [...]

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