UMD Smith School of Business launches social entrepreneur-in-residence program

The University of Maryland, College Park, has launched a social entrepreneur-in-residence program, according to a press release from the Smith School of Business.

A trio of social entrepreneurs with industry success in technology, law and fashion are appointees to the inaugural social entrepreneur-in-residence team at the Robert H. Smith School of Business Center for Social Value Creation at the University of Maryland.
The appointees are Kim Persons, a partner with the KAP Group and founding president (1999-2010) of Gecko Traders Inc., a manufacturer and global distributor of handbags and women’s fashion accessories; Drew Bewick, managing director of Tree House Ventures, LLC, a technology and innovation consulting firm serving multiple companies and non-profit organizations; and Darius Graham, co-founder of the DC Social Innovation Project – a non-profit providing seed funding and pro bono services to spur creative, new projects tackling pressing social issues in Washington, D.C.

The Center for Social Value Creation at UMD’s Smith School was founded in 2009.
Social entrepreneurship itself, according to the Social Enterprise Alliance, is a relatively new field where the chief focus is developing “businesses whose primary purpose is the common good.” The alliance’s mid-Atlantic summit was held during the inaugural Baltimore Innovation Week. [Full disclosure: Baltimore Innovation Week was organized by Technically Baltimore.]
One recently launched social enterprise startup in Baltimore city is Mission: Launch, which Technically Baltimore reported on in August.