A.E. England Building at Civic Space Park, 424 North Central Avenue, Phoenix, Arizona 85004
On Thursday, December 3 President Obama hosted a summit about job creation. As part of President Obama’s commitment to grassroots organizing, the White House is encouraging community groups across the nation to host their own community forums to discuss job creation in a more local context. Community leaders can upload the results of these meetings through WhiteHouse.gov. The information will be compiled into a report and sent to the Oval Office for review. We invite you to make your contribution to the report by participating in a job forum.
On December 10, 5:00-6:30PM, the Greater Phoenix Economic Council (GPEC) is hosting an Arizona Forum on Jobs and Economic Growth at the Biodesign Institute at ASU. In addition to GPEC, participants include members of the AZ Technology Council, Science Foundation Arizona, labor leaders and non-profit leaders. The focus is to listen to these leaders about what they believe the White House and Congress should do to help create jobs and restart Arizona’s economy.
Given ASU’s role as a socially embedded institution, it is fitting that it serves as the convener of a community jobs forum that highlights how social networks and local community building can lead to job creation in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The forum on December 11 will begin with brief presentations about existing community building efforts in the service and design sectors and the relationship between entrepreneurship and job creation. (read more)
Over the past 2,000 years, organized learning has evolved. Today, however, there are social, economic and cultural needs not being met. American society has undergone massive shifts over the past 50 years but our universities have hardly changed at all. The very identity of the university is at stake. So, ASU is changing that identity. ASU is reinventing higher education in America. By breaking the mold, ASU has created a place where local solutions have global impact. Join us. And pursue the work you believe in.
President Obama recently revealed plans to host a summit on entrepreneurship for business leaders, foundations and social entrepreneurs sometime within the next year. This announcement comes only a month after requesting a $50 million Social Innovation Fund from congress in the FY2010 budget, which emphasizes the president’s position on the potential social entrepreneurship has to transform our society.
Social Entrepreneurship—only one of a number of new terms gaining ground in a field that is expanding at an exponential rate. Traditionally a business term, entrepreneurship has transformed itself to include such diverse areas as health, education, law, engineering, the social sciences, and many more. With this evolution the vocabulary of entrepreneurship itself is changing. Capital gains might now be measured in societal impact. Investment opportunities now include such innovative ideas as micro-financing. And wealth is no longer quantified in strict monetary forms, but now encompasses the social, cultural, and emotional riches of our local and global communities.
The evolved form of entrepreneurship focuses on new and better ways to solve old problems. It challenges the status quo for the purpose of exploring new possibilities leading innovative solutions. Entrepreneurship is a powerful tool that can be used in a variety of ways, but at its heart, entrepreneurship might be viewed as simply a way of amplifying personal goals to achieve maximum impact.
ASU is responding to the changing characteristics of entrepreneurship with the creation of new coursework, funding opportunities, and an array of new certificates in entrepreneurship. The social entrepreneur project GlobalResolve is improving the quality of life for rural communities around the world. And many more initiatives redefining entrepreneurship are springing up everywhere at ASU—from the creation of the new Master of Health Innovation program beginning this fall, to the digital media-based ventures coming out of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication, to the partnership created between the College of Teacher Education and Leadership and University Public Schools Inc. that has now created two charter schools backed by the immense resources of ASU.
But the opportunity to reach more students, more faculty, and more future entrepreneurs who will help to reshape our world is the task set out before all of us. It is not enough to merely support those who already exhibit the traits of an entrepreneur. We must find a way nurture entrepreneurial thinking in the minds of all who wish to pursue the work of bettering our world for future generations.
Doing this requires empowerment. The entrepreneur does not exist in a vacuum; he or she operates best surrounded by others who share their thinking. So the questions are many: how can we spark this entrepreneurial spirit in everyone? And once sparked, how can we then support our entrepreneurs? How do we educate them? How do we justify the need for entrepreneurial skills to those working in such fields as history, biology, or literature? And what exactly are the transferable and teachable skills of an entrepreneur? How can we make sure all students, in every program, across all campuses have the opportunity to acquire these skills?
Your thoughts on this continuing conversation are both welcome and necessary.
Posted by: Samantha L. Miller, University Innovation Fellow
The inaugural class of the ASU Lodestar Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Innovation’s Generation Next Nonprofit Leadership Academy (Gen Next) graduated from its 9-month training on May 8 at the Disability Empowerment Center in Phoenix. Funded by a generous contribution from American Express, Gen Next is a cohort of the Valley’s top emerging nonprofit leaders, chosen to participate in training that provides them with the knowledge and tools needed to take on leadership roles within the nonprofit community.
“Through Gen Next I have learned a lot about my own leadership style and under what circumstances I work most effectively,” says Chela Sullivan, recent graduate of ASU’s Master of Nonprofit Studies program and current Helping Hands Housing Services staff member. “I have also learned that as a manager, I can bring out other people’s strengths by recognizing their leadership styles as well.”
Jany Deng, another member of the inaugural class, was a recipient of nonprofit assistance 10 years ago when he came to the United States as a refugee from Sudan. He graduates this year from the Gen Next program on his road to being a leader in the nonprofit sector.
“As a recipient of services in the past, I have seen how important organization and leadership are in a nonprofit,” says Deng. “Through Gen Next, I learned areas that I need to improve on and I also learned areas that are my strengths. This knowledge will help me to be a better co-worker and to provide better services to my clients.”
Amy Schwabenlender, a Valley of the Sun United Way Gen Next participant, says her favorite part of Gen Next was the connections she made with other members.
“The opportunity to meet other like-minded individuals who have similar career desires in the nonprofit sector was of great use to me,” says Schwabenlender. “It has been not only fun, but beneficial to my work to meet and get to know my classmates. Several of us have found ways to collaborate and share information that was not previously occurring between our organizations.”
Applications for the second Gen Next cohort will be available in June.
The ASU Lodestar Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Innovation (formerly the ASU Center for Nonprofit Leadership and Management), is recognized as a national leader in undergraduate and graduate nonprofit education, research and technical assistance. For more information, please visit: http://nonprofit.asu.edu.
The models and collaborative tools created by the scientists helped the city’s decision makers determine the criticality of the balance of needed investments into infrastructure to keep up with demand, land-use proposals currently being considered, and possible conservation policies.
The p.a.v.e. program invested in six projects during this fiscal year.
- The Sustainable Symphony (Brain Viliunas). This orchestra, led by a School of Music doctoral candidate takes music to public spaces for free concerts and impromptu music education experiences. Their largest project to date has been produced in collaboration with the Phoenix Zoo. They have filed paperwork with the IRS to organize as a 501(c)3 not-for-profit entity, and are planning three concerts for next year.
- Intercollegiate Film Festival is off to a somewhat slower start with their project to host a web-based juried film festival for student filmmakers from top-ten film schools. The website has been designed but the project was put on hold while its organizers concentrate on completing their spring coursework.
- Formatted Pictures. The team has formed a limited liability company to produce issue-oriented narrative and documentary films. P.a.v.e. funds were used to purchase equipment. The company is organizing a screening for potential investors to be held in June.
- The Human Mirror Project. An interdisciplinary group traveled to India to perform and record their cultural interactions in a documentary film. Progress reports were received via a video blog. With the return of the company to the U.S. work on editing the documentary has begun and should be complete by the fall 2009 for potential distribution.
- Kromatic Entertainment. Team leader Marius Ciorcilan has been working with CJ Cornell on developing his product, an interactive media marketing kiosk, for marketability.
- Rehearsal Assistant. Software development for the Android platform was completed in February and there have been over 2500 downloads since. The team is now developing Rehearsal Assistant as an iPhone application available for purchase.
p.a.v.e
School of Theatre and Film
PO Box 872002
Tempe AZ 85287-2002
As part of our project, we offered 2 highly successful workshops (for 1 credit) on starting a sustainable business within an American Indian context.
The initial workshops were 2 days and the students were very excited about the content and the class - we received a number of outstanding ‘testimonials’ from many of the students; several students are continuing with their business concepts and have kept in contact with Technopolis and the American Indian Policy Institute. One student followed up with a full-semester internship with the Policy Institute.
In addition, the American Indian business people who were speakers were thrilled with the workshop. One of the speakers connected the American Indian Policy Institute with Salt River Financial Services Institution (a tribally-chartered non-profit of the Salt River Pima-Maricopa Indian Community) that has contracted with us for a summer youth academy.
Other tribes are getting interested in the academy and we anticipate that this program will grow – it also has the advantage of bringing high school students from near-by tribal locations to ASU to increase their interest in and comfort level with the university.
The initial Student Pathways project is continuing to snowball and expand!
Pat Mariella
American Indian Policy Institute
Arizona State University
(480) 965-9005
Research shows that social connections are important to student retention. But how do you connect students in a university the size of a small city? ASU is tackling this challenge by enhancing the visibility of students’ existing connections through social networking. This month we launched ASU on Facebook, powered by Inigral, a Facebook application that connects students with others in their classes, majors, and colleges. The application also allows students to interact with their professors, join study groups, and find other students from their home town or regions. All of these connections already exist, but with ASU on Facebook students can see their connections as soon as they log on – and new students can start connecting even before they arrive on campus.
The application is secure and private (an ASURITE ID is required for access), and Facebook profiles are hidden from other users in the application. Beginning this summer, alumni can join ASU on Facebook to connect with other grads. And starting this fall, current students will be able to use ASU on Facebook to join clubs and organizations, connect with others in their residence halls, and share events and experiences like internships and study abroad.
ASU not only deals with the difficult issues, it produces knowledge that leads to action. And to effect massive change, ASU finds ways to bring these solutions to as many people as possible.
Stroke is the leading cause of serious, long-term disability in the United States. Therapy is almost always needed after a stroke, but, for many patients, traditional therapy methods are not effective enough.
ASU researchers are developing tools to better address stroke patients’ needs. One of these efforts brings together artists, bioengineers, musicians, psychologists, electrical engineers and computer scientists in the Arts, Media and Engineering program. Working collaboratively, these researchers have created Mixed Reality Rehabilitation, a new system of rehabilitation that allows patients to relearn movements.
Patients drive their own therapy, as opposed to traditional methods where a therapist facilitates each session. Using multimedia technology, patients become more engaged as they recreate pictures or songs based on movements.
A scaled-down version of the interactive lab will be implemented at the John J. Rhodes Rehabilitation Institute at Banner Baywood Medical Center in Mesa, Arizona. In 2008, a pilot system was used in some patients’ homes. It is expected to be widely available for home use and hospitals by 2012.
