Most HBS graduates are actively involved in non-profits and social enterprises throughout their careers. But every year a few decide their calling is strong enough to dedicate their lives to it. This article salutes some of these members of our 100th graduating class, which undeterred by our economic crisis, saw an opportunity to create change. Most of them are being supported by the Leadership Fellow Program, which providesÿa matching one-year grant of $45,000. Moreÿat //www.hbs.edu/socialenterprise//leadershipfellows/.ÿ
Meredith Liu,
Section I
School Turnaround Strategy Group
Meredith had been at Bain for a little over 2 years in 2006 when she took the leap of faith to work on education. She spent two years working in a charter public school and then joined HBS. But the call kept coming back and after finishing first-year honors, Meredith decided to take a leave from HBS and became Director of The School Turnaround Strategy Group.
It is an initiative from the Mass Insight Education and Research Institute and is focused on helping state, district and school level-officials to cooperate and turn around chronically under-performing schools.
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Derek Aguirre, Section E
Racquet Up Detroit
From the depths of the city that has suffered the most in the last decade comes a story of hope. Racquet Up is squash with purpose — it is an after-school program that works with inner-city students in Detroit. It uses the sport of squash, along with academic support and mentoring, to make a difference in the kids’ lives.
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Aguirre is a native from Michigan and founded Racquet Up after being inspired by a similar Boston-based organization where he worked for six years.
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Danelle Radney, Section Jÿ
Initiative for a Competitive Inner City
ICIC was founded by Prof Michael Porter in 1994. Its mission is to promote economic prosperity in America’s inner cities, engaging with the private sector to create jobs, income and wealth for local residents. ICIC does research in 100 inner cities to uncover what works and what doesn’t work, publishes a list in Business Week of companies that are making a positive change, and organizes several events ranging from 300 to 1,000 people all over the US.
Radney had spent about three years at Target before moving steadily to the non-profit world.
Hui Wen Chan, Section E
International AIDS Vaccine Initiative
IAVI is a non-profit focused on accelerating the development of vaccines to preventÿHIV infection andÿAIDS. It believes in public-private partnership, funds translational research, and publishes a range of materials related to AIDS. It is a global organization but focuses especially on the developing world, where 95% of new infections occur.
Chan did about a year and half each n consulting and banking before moving the Clinton Foundation and then HBS.
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Trish Carlson,
Section J
Partners In Health
PIH is a Boston-based organization founded by Harvard professor and doctor Paul Farmer. It strives to bring good medical care to the poor by long-term partnerships with local organizations. PIH was started in Haiti and much of their work is still there. In the wake of the Haiti earthquake in January 2010, which may have claimed as many as 230,000 lives, PIH was one of the primary organizations at the forefront of the human response.
Trish came from investment banking before HBS and brought her financial acumen to PIH.
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Rebecca Arnold,
Section D
Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts
LCPA is New York City’s premier center for the arts. It organizes more than 400 events annually, including American Songbook, Great Performers, Lincoln Center Festival, Lincoln Center Out of Doors, Midsummer Night Swing, the Mostly Mozart Festival, and the Emmy Award-winning Live from Lincoln Center.
Arnold was at Booz for three years before business school and always passionate about the arts. At HBS she was the producer of the HBS Show.
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Lindsay Steinmetz, Section E
Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation, now headquartered in New York City, provides grants on three main areas: reduce poverty, strengthen democratic values, promote international cooperation, and advance human achievement. Their current endowment is $13.7 billion.
Before Steinmetz worked in education in Honduras, the Bay Area, and Boston.
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Whitney Petersmeyer Segneri,
Section D
Teach For America
TFA recruits recent college graduates and professionals to teach for two years in low-income communities throughout the US. It currently serves 38 regions and commands revenues of almost $200 million.
Segneri was in consulting before business school and the L&V Rep of her section and then the L&V Chair for HBS.
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Stella Treas,
Section B
Special Olympics
Special Olympics give an opportunity to people with intellectual disabilities. Competitions are held every day and the main event (World Games) is held every two years, alternating between Summer and Winter Games. Today, more than 3 million athletes from 170 countries are involved the training and competition.
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Treas said “It is exciting to work for an international organization that is committed to empowering one of the world’s most marginalized populations. ÿMy Leadership Fellowship has allowed me to work closely with top management to shape the future of this organization. ÿI would never have had a similar, high impact opportunity fresh out of business school if I had gone the traditional corporate route.”
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Among other things, Treas was at McKinsey and TechnoServe before HBS. At Special Olympics she serves as the Director of Strategy Development.
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ÿMatt Segneri,
Section E
City of Boston Mayor’s Office
Officially the city of Boston has about 650,000 people, making it the twentieth-largest in the US. Greater Boston is the tenth largest in the country. Managing such a large city, from education to crime, is no joke.
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Segneri was previously in consulting and did his summer internship at the FBI.
Tamara Heimur,
Section F
Millennium Challenge Corporation
The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) is a US Government agency that manages the Millennium Challenge Account, a bilateral development fund created in January 2004. MCC funds country-led foreign aid programs which support sustainable economic growth. To qualify for aid, countries must pass a competitive selection of 17 indicators, with an emphasis on good governance, economic freedom, and investments in citizens.
Before HBS, Heimur worked extensively in international development, including at the Ministry of State in Liberia and the US Department of the Treasury in Washington, DC.
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Lindsey Henken,
Section F
Hospital for Special Surgery
HSS is a hospital inÿNew York Cityÿspecializing in orthopedic surgery and treatingÿrheumatologicÿconditions. It was ranked #1 for orthopedics and #3 for rheumatology in the 2010 edition of “America’s Best Hospitals” byÿUS News and World Report ÿ
Jean-Claude Homawoo,
Section I
Endeavor
Endeavor is a non-profit focused on promoting entrepreneurship in emerging markets.
Endeavor claims the 285 companies it has supported, run by 438 entrepreneurs,ÿhave collectively created over 100,000 jobs and generated $3 billion in revenues in 2008 alone.
Homawoo, born in Belgium and raised in Togo and France, has advised several startups on strategy and fund-raising. Before HBS he was at Motorola Israel, GLG Hong Kong, and Silicon Graphics NYC.
ÿAuthor’s Biography
AmitÿGargÿused to be a writer and the science and technology editor for “The Stanford Daily”. After undergrad and masters in that sunny Cali haven, four years at Google, dabbling in non-profits and startups, and picking up HBS along the way, he is trying to keep hisÿjournalisticÿgroove on. One of his dents in the universe has been working with a NGO in rural India since 2000, and they are currently building a hospital (//www.hospitalforhope.org).
