UConn Advance - June 2, 2008 - New scholarships aid global education

Undergraduate students at UConn will have the opportunity to gain essential experience and skills for nonprofit and social entrepreneurial careers with two new scholarships created for internships and study abroad.

The Ed Satell Non-Profit Internship Program and the Ed Satell International Social Entrepreneurship Fund were established with a gift of $100,000, split evenly between the programs, by business school alumnus Edward Satell ’57, to mark the 50th anniversary of his graduation from UConn.

Satell, founder, president, and chief executive officer of Progressive Business Publications in Malvern, Pa., says he wants to help students explore what they are passionate about and become conscientious global citizens.

“Each generation makes its own contribution, building on what was done by the previous generation,” he says.

“Students now have the opportunity to contribute in their own way to make this world a better place. Social entrepreneurship has had an impact in many countries around the world. It allows people to have the dignity to earn money and be independent. It advances society and advances democracy.”

The internship program will support students in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences who are working in unpaid positions with nonprofit organizations, such as museums or government agencies that address poverty.

“Nonprofits often do not have the resources to offer paid internships,” says Douglas Hamilton, professor of physics and associate dean of liberal arts and sciences.

“The gift of these scholarships opens up new opportunities for students in this important part of our social economy.”

Recipients of the Ed Satell International Social Entrepreneurship Fund will be selected by UConn’s Office of Study Abroad, offering aid to students working on social entrepreneurship projects related to economic and social development in other countries.

“One of the most effective ways for students to help the poorer people of the world rise out of terrible poverty is through social entrepreneurship, including the development of micro-finance and micro-credit business opportunities,” says Ross Lewin, director of the Study Abroad program.

“By participating in this program, our students will acquire an extremely valuable set of business skills, but also the intercultural knowledge, skills, and attitudes required to affect problems of global significance.”

Satell’s two charitable foundations, the Satell Family Trust and the Progressive Business Publications Charitable Trust Fund, actively support diverse philanthropic projects focusing on four areas, including medical research, disadvantaged children, community organizations, and education.