Social Impact Blog

Nick Hirsch is the Managing Director of Coffee Crafters Academy. This business operates cafes inside of correctional facilities as a hands-on program to teach inmates marketable skills and to develop a positive work history that will help them obtain employment once released. It is a for-profit social enterprise of Nothing Into Something Real Estate (NISRE) […]

In January 2017, EmpowerBus was just an idea on paper and comprised two components: one that involved providing children with safe, reliable school transportation, and another one for workforce transportation. Later that year, EmpowerBus co-founders Jerry Tsai and Aslyne Rodriguez decided to participate in SEA Change, a social enterprise accelerator program. They were matched up […]

Lisa Hinkelman, a former professor at The Ohio State University (OSU), has turned a research study into a multi-state business. Ruling Our eXperiences (ROX) is a nonprofit committed to equipping girls with the knowledge and skills they need to lead healthy, independent, productive, and violence-free lives. The organization achieves this by providing a K-12 school […]

Over the past five years, Philanthropitch, the social impact fast pitch competition, has been on a mission to scale innovative nonprofits in communities around the nation. Presented by Kiwanis Club of Columbus & co-hosted by SocialVentures, the first annual Philanthropitch Columbus will take place at the the Speaker Jo Ann Davidson Theatre in the Riffe […]

John Rush has started three for-profit businesses over the past six years that are committed to creating more stable lives for survivors of human trafficking, recovering drug addicts, the formerly incarcerated, and those that society has neglected. In six years, he has created 668 jobs and expanded his customer base by 2000 percent. CleanTurn’s brands […]

Steve Votaw has used his two degrees in criminal justice to tackle its underlying causes. He spent the first 18 years of his professional life expanding Directions for Youth and Families to a $8 million nonprofit serving at-risk families. For the past three years, Steve has served as president of the Furniture Bank of Central […]

During the August 7 presentation at SocialVentures’ annual Positioned to Prosper event, Allen Proctor announced that Social Ventures Fund has made its first investment in Roosevelt Coffee Roasters. Social Ventures Fund, LLC lent $50,000 to Roosevelt Coffee, LLC. Kenny Sipes, Founder of The Roosevelt Coffeehouse, came to the stage to talk about his new business […]

Eddie Rapp founded Fairhaven Lawn Care in 2008 to provide jobs and housing to the homeless in Lancaster. Four years later he launched Patriot Pride Painting Co. to do the same for homeless veterans. Fairhaven provides residential and commercial lawn care throughout Central Ohio and Patriot Pride provides residential and commercial interior and exterior painting […]

Talking about social enterprise and social impact is getting confusing because the words are being used to apply to any business that is good. We define social enterprises as  businesses that intentionally integrate social impact as a non-negotiable component of their business model through the people they employ or the social missions they support

Pearl Interactive Network operates, staffs, or manages call centers for Federal agencies and prime contractors. It gives hiring priority to skilled and talented disabled veterans, veterans, military spouses, and the disabled. When Merry Korn founded Pearl Interactive network in 2004 as a for-profit social enterprise, the concept of basing a for-profit business on the creation […]