Over the past year, University of Detroit Mercy’s Center for Social Entrepreneurship (CSE) has been serving its core function while expanding in new directions. Joining Director Derrin Leppek this year as assistant director of the CSE is Olga Alavanou, ’98, former executive vice president of Yazaki North and Central America.Â
The Boost program of the CSE, a nine-week series of business workshops for start-ups that are designed to make a positive impact on the community, has now graduated dozens of new social enterprises. Broadly speaking, 30 percent are involved in neighborhood revitalization, 30 percent are educational in nature, 22.5 percent address health and livelihood issues, and 17.5 percent deal with food systems and nutrition. With the aid of seasoned entrepreneurs serving as mentors for at least six weeks following the workshops, these start-ups learn to navigate the marketplace, create sustainable ventures, and provide true benefits to society. In addition to helping them develop their business skills, the CSE has helped these new social enterprises secure more than $1.425 million in funding.
Among the social entrepreneurs who’ve recently participated in CSE programs are Alejandra Barnes of DYOS Counseling, and Paulina Petkoski of Playground Detroit. DYOS Counseling specializes in counseling at-risk youth in the Hispanic population of southwest, Detroit. After completing Boost, Barnes was able to reach sustainability by increasing her monthly revenue by more than $5,000. She did this by balancing her portfolio of clients and setting up insurance reimbursements. Playground Detroit, an art gallery on the east side of Detroit, provides space for local artists to promote and sell their work. The Boost program helped her find sustainability by understanding the financial performance of the business, creating new revenue streams and restructuring existing debt.
Over the past two years, the CSE has also hosted large conferences for local and state-wide groups, including the Detroit Nonprofit Day and two EmpowerHer symposia for Michigan Women Forward. Including Boosts and conferences, the CSE has touched the lives of nearly 23,000 individuals. And Leppek has also been working with faculty in the College of Business Administration to design a new undergraduate concentration in social entrepreneurship, so degree-seeking students who plan to launch social enterprises—or lead existing ones—have the skills and background to do so.
For more information on the Center for Social Entrepreneurship, call 313-993-1189.
