SPOTLIGHT: 2014 PANELS & VENTURE FAIR

Did you miss the 2014 LearnServe Fellows' Panels and Venture Fair? Or do you want to relive some of the excitement? Don't worry: we've got video! Our 64 LearnServe Fellows pitched 53 dynamic venture plans for transforming their schools and communities. Click on the image above for a peak at the panels, interviews with students, and an introduction to our 2014 Innovation Award Winners.

AND THEY'RE OFF!

The 2014 Abroad teams have all made it safely to Zambia, Paraguay, and Jamaica, and are actively working on their volunteer projects. Thank you to our embassy partners who made their send-off celebration so special: Francisco Barreiro, Deputy Chief of Mission, Embassy of Paraguay, and Mrs. Ariel Bowen, Minister-Counsellor, Embassy of Jamaica. Thank you also to our keynote speakers, Orlando Carvajal, IMF, Investment Office and Member of the IMF Civic Program Advisory Committee, and Zora Williams, Rockville High School (Zambia '13, Fellows '13).

Check out their blogs to keep up with their activities and adventures.

LearnServe Jamaica blog

LearnServe Paraguay blog

LearnServe Zambia blog

CAN YOU TEACH SOCIAL ENTERPRISE?

Could the next Jamila Larson, Mazi Mutafa, or Robert Egger be sitting in class right now in the District, Maryland, or Virginia?

Maybe.

J. D. Harrison opens his March 23, 2014 Washington Post article titled “Can you really teach entrepreneurship?” with a similar question, but a different cast of characters: Steve Jobs. Mark Zuckerberg.

Toss in Bill Gates, and you’ve got the three examples of entrepreneurs referenced by every high school group I speak with. And for good reason. All three have built successful companies whose products shape our daily lives, and a personal brand that complements their corporate identities. Ask a room full of high school students for examples of social entrepreneurs?  Uncomfortable silence.

We are surrounded by powerful examples of social entrepreneurs here in the DC region. But they’re not (yet) household names – unless you happen to spend time with their organizations.

Read the full post on our blog>>

CONGRATS 2014 FELLOWS

Our 2014 LearnServe Fellows walked across the stage at the Department of Education on Thursday, May 8, marking their graduation as LearnServe Fellows.  Noemie Levy of the White House Office of Social Innovation treated Fellows and their guests to a perspective from the other side – offering honest reflections on the challenges and rewards of pursuing a career in social change.  Congratulations to our 2014 Fellows!  We look forward to seeing how their ventures flourish over the coming years.

Meet the winners of the 2014 Innovation Award

ONE YEAR LATER: FELLOWS 2013

Each year, fifty teams debut their venture ideas before 150 local business and non-profit ideas.  Wondering what happens next?  Scott gives us an update on our 2013 LearnServe Fellows, one year later.

Read the full post on our blog >>

STAFF PROFILE: ERIC GOLDSTEIN

As Eric Goldstein steps back from his leadership responsibilities with the Fellows Program, we celebrate his seven years of dedication to LearnServe International.

Eric first joined LearnServe in 2007 when he joined the LearnServe Zambia program as a teacher, along with 3 of his students from the SEED Public Charter School in DC.  Eric joined the Fellows Program team in 2009 to develop the curriculum, grow the program, and train new leadership.  After four years as a Fellows Program Leader, Eric shifts away from his program responsibilities this month, but will remain involved in other aspects of the organization.

Eric models the social entrepreneurship that our programs teach.  He is the Founder and Executive Director of One World Education (OWEd).  The DC-based non-profit leads middle and high school Common Core literacy programs and publishes student essays about cultural and global issues.  Their programs promote peer-to-peer learning, while helping students build the skills necessary for college and career writing.  Eric has been an educator in public, charter, and independent schools, and earned a United States Department of the Interior Partners in Education Award while teaching in a charter school in Southeast Washington, DC in 2006.

Eric holds a Masters in Education from the University of Vermont, and a Masters of International Policy from the George Washington University.  He is the father of two young children.  His career in education started after a solo, 5,000 mile bicycle trip across the United States in 1999.