“Discover. Design. Do Good!” The Social Innovation Fellows End of Year Celebration

On May 3, 2018, the Institute for Nonprofits hosted a reception in the James B. Hunt Jr. Library to highlight projects completed by the inaugural cohort of Social Innovation Fellows. Dr. Richard Clerkin began the celebratory event by acknowledging distinguished guests that came to support the Fellows. After his welcome, Jane Rogers, one of the team mentors for the Fellows, gave remarks about her pride in the students, and introduced the Fellows to the audience.

After the introduction from Jane Rogers, the Fellows were given the opportunity to present their projects.The Fellows presented six projects that focused on topics of food and water.  The six projects were the Haiti Goat Project, Wine to Water, Oceanworks, CompostNow, Freshspire, and Community Conversation. During the presentations, some of the teams introduced their products, while other teams discussed their experiences in the program. Also, each team expressed gratitude to their team mentors, the Brain Trust members, and the staff at the Institute for Nonprofits. Overall, the presentations revealed that the Fellows’ projects will create positive social impacts for the community.

Following the presentations, Elizabeth Benefield addressed the Fellows to formally congratulate them on a successful year, and she acknowledged guests that provided assistance to the Fellows throughout the year. Aly Khalifa, Social Entrepreneur-in-Residence as well as team mentor for the Fellows, gave closing remarks at the reception. In his remarks, Khalifa told the Fellows that this year was “only the beginning” of their innovative endeavors. Ultimately, the event ended with a reception that gave guests an opportunity to engage with the Fellows about their projects.

For more information about the Social Innovation Fellows program: Contact Elizabeth Benefield at eabenefi@ncsu.edu or visit the website http://go.ncsu.edu/sifellows