Center for Urban Families Wins Social Enterprise Competition

Four Non-Profits Vied for Award Following Semester-Long Course

February 2, 2010
Contact: University Relations
Phone: 410.837.5739

The Center for Urban Families won the fifth annual competition for area nonprofits to develop a plan to start a social enterprise, bringing home a $3,500 award that will be used for start-up costs for their new social venture: the CFUF Training and Technical Assistance Institute. The center was one of four area nonprofit organizations that competed for a chance to receive funding in a nationally honored capstone course co-presented by the University of Baltimore's Social Enterprise Collaborative and the Entrepreneurial Opportunity Center in UB's Merrick School of Business. The Center for Urban Families' award of $3,500 topped a list of several prizes that were given to participating organizations upon completion of the course, which conveys ways to develop sustainable income strategies for their nonprofits.

Now in its fifth year, the Entrepreneurial Opportunity Center and the undergraduate/graduate course, Social Enterprise—Entrepreneurship in the Social Sector, taught by John C. Weiss III, assistant professor in the School of Business, strive to pair up entrepreneurial UB students with select nonprofits. Since 2008, Weiss has co-led the course with long-time social enterprise practitioner John D. Herron, CEO of Harbor City Services. Since its opening in 1987, Herron's company has offered employment opportunities to disabled individuals.

The Social Enterprise course results in the organizations' and the students' development of social enterprise strategies—detailed business plans to grow their nonprofits by establishing money-making ventures that are tied to their respective missions. In 2009, the course was recognized as a model for innovative curriculum by the United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship.

At the end of the course, the nonprofits and the students enter a competition to determine which of their plans has the best chance for success. These plans were presented last month to a panel of experienced area business leaders, including Neil Davis, vice president for operations at the Emerging Technology Centers; Watchen Bruce Harris, assistant vice president and development adviser for PNC Bank; Ann Quinn, senior vice president of SC&H Capital Group; and Emried Cole, vice president of seminary advancement for the Lutheran Theological Seminary. Each of these judges is actively engaged in a variety of social enterprises.

This year’s other participating nonprofits included:

  • New Pathways
  • Tuerk House Recovery Centers
  • TuTTie's Place

Seed funds for the competition were generated from a combined grant from the Annie E. Casey Foundation, the Goldseker Foundation, the Thallheimer Foundation and the Open Society Institute. Program participants also receive continuing coaching and mentoring resources from the EOC. To further meet the growing needs of the area's social entrepreneurs, the EOC frequently hosts workshops and seminars specifically designed for social entrepreneurs. Past guest have included social innovators such as Robert Egger of D.C. Central Kitchen, and Kevin Lynch, co-author of Mission, Inc.: The Practitioner’s Guide to Social Enterprise. 

The University of Baltimore is a member of the University System of Maryland and comprises the School of Law, the Yale Gordon College of Liberal Arts and the Merrick School of Business.