Social
responsibility a perennial focus at Kellogg
by
Deborah Leigh Wood
Count
the heads and crunch the numbers: Social responsibility is
a big hit at the Kellogg School.
Roughly
40 percent of all Kellogg students — some 500 total
— belong to the school's Social
Impact Club, an organization committed to leveraging business
skills to create better communities and a more just world.
Students are encouraged to volunteer, support philanthropies
and serve as nonvoting members on nonprofit boards.
"We have a
huge momentum going," says Jessica Bailey '06, the club's
newly elected president. "We've sponsored about 35 programs
in the last year."
For example, through
its Board Fellows Program, the club matches Kellogg MBA candidates
with the boards of Chicago-area nonprofits for one-year fellowships.
More generally, the club encourages debate within the Kellogg
School on the private sector's role in matters of social responsibility.
"Debate is
critical for building consensus among decision makers to adopt
more market-based strategies to resolve challenges in the
nonprofit world," says Mina C. Kumar '05, the club's
past president.
On Feb. 23, the
club organized its first Social Impact Career Fair, attracting
more than 120 students and 31 organizations, including Bridgespan
and Habitat for Humanity.
Typical
of the club's efforts to keep social responsibility on the
business agenda was the annual Innovating
Social Change Conference. The October conference brought
to campus such leaders as Richard Caines, principal specialist
and acting manager of Market Development Group, IFC.
"I was bowled
over to see how many of this year's MBA cohort have an interest
in social entrepreneurship," says Caines, who was the
keynote speaker. "It's very heartening and a clear demonstration
that there is a sea change in the way the next generation
will view their careers."
The club's successes
were recognized last year by two awards from Net Impact, the
leading international network of business students and professionals
devoted to using the powers of business to create a better
world. Net Impact, which has more than 10,000 members, honored
the club with a first place Chapter Service Award and a second
place Chapter of the Year Award.
"This
award is a great recognition of the team's hard work and its
commitment to serving the Kellogg community," said Liz
Livingston Howard '93, associate director of the Kellogg
Center
for Nonprofit Management.
This fall,
the club will host a speaker series that will include Suzanne
Mink, vice president of development for the World Wildlife
Foundation, and Janet Knupp, founding president of the Chicago
Public Education Fund.
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