Fox Peer Advisors

Independent Study – 18203 – SGM 3582 – 003;

 

Benjamin Franklin once wrote: “necessity breeds invention”. Indeed, amid the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression, there is renewed inventiveness in the field of entrepreneurship. Innovating around entrepreneurship itself is at the heart of this unique course geared towards industrious, self-directed students interested in community-centered entrepreneurship.

 

In this Fall 2012 hands-on course, a small group of students will help build the foundation for a long-term project that seeks to identify, measure, bolster and codify “commonwealth entrepreneurship” on a hyper-local level. Based on a concept introduced by the instructor in his book, Invisible Capital: How Unseen Forces Shape Entrepreneurial Opportunity.

 

Commonwealth entrepreneurship is the socio-economic phenomenon that produces commonwealth enterprises–ventures whose operations inherently create or strengthen community assets such as public health and well-being, public safety, education, the arts and culture, environmental stewardship, democratic expression and civic engagement.

 

Temple students will interview, and analyze data from, various stakeholders such as parents, youth, elders, teachers, clergy, public servants and current and prospective entrepreneurs. They will also review the latest research and become familiarized with entrepreneurial eco-system locally and beyond. At the conclusion of this course, students will present their findings to the instructor and various other stakeholders for potential adoption by the Commonwealth Enterprise Index Project.

 

This course is being taught by Professor Chris Rabb, the Social Entrepreneur in residence at the Fox School’s Innovation & Entrepreneurship Institute (IEI).

 

Chris Rabb brings an unparalleled expertise and fantastic energy to issues around Social Impact and Urban Entrepreneurship. These are increasingly important topics the world over and are especially relevant to Temple University, to our students, and to Philadelphia.

 

http://www.invisiblecapital.com/

 

Since we only have a small number of spots in this group independent study course, please send Professor Rabb an email describing your background and interest if you would like to sign up:

 

rabb@temple.edu.

 

Note: This section of SGM 3582 fulfills the breadth elective for Entrepreneurship majors or fills a general business elective for other Fox students (Independent Study – 18203 – SGM 3582 – 003; Meeting time/place: TBD)