Press Release

Eller College students test business skills in social arena

Impoverished Nigerian women are beneficiaries of Social Entrepreneurship class project

TUCSON, Ariz. – DATE – At first glance social activism and entrepreneurship seem at odds with each other, but upon further scrutiny entrepreneurship can indeed encompass both the gold and the greater good. A handful of students enrolled in a Social Entrepreneurship class at the Eller College of Management are currently immersed in entrepreneurship for the greater good, hoping to bring the gold to an impoverished group of Nigerian women.

Seven students under the tutelage of Stephen Gilliland, Eller College Department of Management and Policy head and professor, have spent a semester creating a business structure for a nonprofit venture to benefit Nigerian women — Institute for Research on African Women, Children, and Culture (IRAWCC). The group of graduate and undergraduate students will present the results of its work to professors and community supporters Monday, May 1 from 1:00 – 2:00 p.m. in McClelland Hall on The University of Arizona campus.

Leslye Obiora, professor of law at the James E. Rogers College of Law, piloted IRAWCC in 2004 with the hope of improving the lives and status of 103 women in the Nigerian village of Oguta. The project has been successful, but Obiora needed help structuring the organization and communicating the concept to potential investors. She brought her plight to Gilliland’s Social Entrepreneurship students, who embraced the idea. They quickly stepped in to research the venture and provide recommendations on organizational structure, as well as reorganize the financial management of the operation.

Gilliland has been teaching the Social Entrepreneurship class for five years. Its purpose is to enable students to use their business skills to address social and environmental issues. With the cohesion and sustainability of Obiora’s project in jeopardy, this year’s student work is paramount to the continuing success of IRAWCC.

According to Gilliland, students in the class are being exposed to ways their business knowledge and leadership abilities can be used to contribute to society’s greater good. He cited a comment from a student who said, “This is the most valuable and fulfilling endeavor in all of my undergraduate and graduate experiences.”

Oguta, Nigeria was selected for the pilot project because women living there are significantly economically depressed and occupy a low place in the social hierarchy. Nigerian high school students were identified to teach the women the skills necessary to raise their socioeconomic status. Once the women have fulfilled required classes focusing on social, political, economic, cultural, and civic knowledge and skills, they become eligible for a micro loan to begin a business venture.

The presentation of recommendations will take place in McClelland 208. For further information about the project and the class, contact Stephen Gilliland at 520.621.9324 or sgill@eller.arizona.edu.

The Eller College of Management at The University of Arizona is internationally recognized for pioneering research, innovative curriculum, distinguished faculty, excellence in entrepreneurship, and social responsibility. U.S.News & World Report ranks the Eller undergraduate program #12 among public business schools and five of its departments are among the top 25 — Entrepreneurship, MIS, Marketing, Management and Organizations, and Accounting. The MPA program in the School of Public Administration and Policy ranks in the top 50. Financial Times ranks the Eller MBA full-time program #27 in the U.S. and #57 in the world, and Forbes ranks the program among the top 50 nationwide. The College leads the nation’s business schools in generating grant funds for research. In addition to a full-time MBA program, the Eller College offers an evening MBA program, and the Eller Executive MBA. The Eller College of Management supports more than 5,100 undergraduate and 600 graduate students on the UA campus in beautiful Tucson, Arizona.

Press Contact:
Liz Warren-Pederson, Eller College of Management
520.626.9547, news@eller.arizona.edu