About The Stewart Satter Social Entrepreneurship Fund

The Satter Fund has provided financial support and management assistance to nonprofit organizations and double bottom line companies run by Stern students and alumni. The Fund also supports research projects and Stern events and programs operated by NYU Stern MBA students and alumni, faculty and staff. To date the Fund has distributed $750,000 in awards. The Fund supports the following types of projects:

• Start up nonprofit organizations
• Double bottom line companies
• Social enterprises at existing nonprofit organizations
• Research projects
• Stern events and programs

The Satter Fund was launched to foster social venture creation among the Stern community.  Social entrepreneurship leverages business and entrepreneurial skills to create innovative approaches to solving social problems. These nonprofit and for-profit ventures pursue the double bottom line of financial self-sustainability or profitability and social impact. Typical grants range in size from $25,000 to $100,000. An Advisory Board comprised of practitioners, faculty and administrators awards grants annually to support new projects. 

The Satter Fund was made possible by a gift from Stewart Satter, Stern MBA '82 and CEO of Consumer Testing Laboratories.

Satter Fund Objectives

• To provide start-up assistance to high potential Stern-affiliated social entrepreneurs
• To provide thought leadership in the field of social entrepreneurship
• To encourage MBA students and alumni to pursue social sector careers
• To create a model for supporting social entrepreneurship activities that can be replicated in other locations around the country

2006-2007 Satter Fund Grantees

Care Force  New York  -- $75,000
Care Force New York is a revenue-generating arm of City Year New York, the New York division of the Boston-based "action tank" for citizen service, civic leadership and social entrepreneurship. Care Force New York operates on a fee-for-service model to produce high-impact community service events for large groups of corporate volunteers. Over the course of the next five years, Care Force New York will become a valuable subsidiary of City Year New York, ultimately generating more than $300,000 per year for City Year. Mithra Irani Ramaley (MBA ’99) is the co-executive director of City Year New York. http://www.cityyear.org/about/programs/care_force.cfm

Smart Volunteer -- $75,000
Smart Volunteer is a nonprofit organization dedicated to matching skilled professionals with volunteer opportunities at nonprofits and charities. Smart Volunteer is designed to enable nonprofits and charities to significantly reduce their expenditures on professional services by increasing the quality and quantity of their volunteers, while providing motivated, resourceful and experienced individuals that can leverage their professional expertise. Through an easy-to-use website, Smart Volunteer will enable organizations to post projects for which they need professional services and allow providers of such services to search and apply for volunteer projects appropriate to their expertise, time commitment and personal interests.  Nir Altman (MBA ’06) a co-founder and director of Smart Volunteer. http://www.smartvolunteer.org

GaiaSoil -- $50,000
GaiaSoil, a social enterprise of the Gaia Institute, will address severe environmental hazards through the installation of thousands of green roofs in the greater New York area. GaiaSoil, a patented, ultra-light growing medium made from materials taken directly from the waste stream, will be used to create green roofs  on roofs with low maximum load-bearing capacity. GaiaSoil green roofs are designed to reduce combined sewer overflow while effectively retaining water. Daniel Simon (BS ’01) is the marketing director. Profits from GaiaSoil will fund Gaia Institute’s research and projects. http://www.gaiasoil.org

Conference of Social Entrepreneurs -- $50,000
Organized by NYU Stern’s Berkley Center, the conference will bring together scholars and practitioners to enrich and promote the understanding of both theoretical and practical research in the field of social entrepreneurship. www.stern.nyu.edu/berkley/social