Social Innovation

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Students interested in learning more should contact Rebecca Otten at rotten@tulane.edu. Building upon Tulane University's strengths in civic engagement and service learning, the interdisciplinary social innovation and social entrepreneurship (SISE) minor will prepare students to use solutions-oriented thinking, integrate theory and practice, generate and support stimulating research across fields, & better understand and create new models of social change. Tulane recognizes that well-informed, motivated, and connected citizens are the real agents that create change, and the time and place to cultivate these changemakers is during their university studies. SISE will enable student to explore how they can be changemakers in whatever career path they choose, be it working for a nonprofit, a corporation, in academia, or starting their own venture. Learn more about our Professors in Social Entrepreneurship.
 
Pre-requisites, concurrent enrollment, and course substitutes:

• Students are required to take ECON 1010 before pursuing the SISE Minor
• Students may enroll in ECON 1010 and SISE 2010 concurrently
• Business majors will substitute a business school class in place of SISE 2020
• Architecture majors will substitute an architecture school class in place of SISE 3010

Please note: SISE courses do not fulfill any departmental electives.

The requirements of the SISE minor include these five courses:

SISE 2010: Introduction to Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship
The introductory class gives students an appreciation for the field of social entrepreneurship and introduces students to several helpful frameworks that will be used in subsequent classes. Students will examine key concepts and the historical context, understand current theories and debates about social change, and discuss case studies of social entrepreneurs. The class will address two overaching tenets of SISE:

• Social impact can best be created by moving away from the current divisive approach of separate sectors and towards blended models that connect and combine sectors in new ways
• Social mission and social impact are the primary focus - understanding what your mission is, and how you create the greatest social impact, is key
  

SISE 2020: Introduction to Business for Social Innovation and Social Entrepreneurship
Not required for business majors or minors
Course credit cannot count towards a business degree
This course assumes no prior background in business concepts and is open to declared SISE minors who have completed SISE 2010. The course is designed to give students basic competence in understanding and analyzing the core elements of sustainable business models. Through this course, students will gain a working vocabulary, theoretical toolkit, and fundamental technical skillset for operating in a business environment. Topics include accounting, finance, strategy, marketing, sales, operations, organizational structure and management.

SISE 3010: Design Thinking for Collective Impact
Not required for architecture majors or minors
Course credit cannot count towards an architecture degree
This course is a practical, experience-based introduction to design-thinking tools and techniques for SISE undergraduate minors from diverse departments across campus. Students will be exposed to applied research, ideation and problem-solving tools adapted from human-centered design and architecture. Using New Orleans as a laboratory and working with local partners, students will creatively and collaboratively address local community concerns, leading to a prototype for installation in a neighborhood. In addition, readings, case studies, lectures, and writing exercises will allow students to learn from these local design-thinking experiences to more fruitfully address global problems, such as climate change, poverty, and the AIDS pandemic, that they aim to pursue in their program major and SISE practicum.

SISE 4020: Leadership for Collective Impact
This seminar is about "Leadership" - how the term has been defined and studied, as well as how it has been practiced. On the one hand, the course will focus conceptually on the genealogies and evolution of the theory and practice of leadership. On the other hand, the course will assess the current state of leadership scholarship by engaging students with current leadership literature and thinking.  We will explore why leadership has taken on so many different definitions and delve into some of the major issues and debates in the field. Students will be guided in the development of their own leadership skills, as the course will require students to practice leadership both in the course and in the community.

SISE 6020: Senior Practicum
The SISE senior practicum is a course that provides a context for SISE minors to apply the knowledge, skills, and attitudes acquired over their courses of study to the planning, development, completion, and evaluation of community-based or inspired project. Students will develop a senior practicum project plan in partnership with a faculty advisor. The final project will be presented to the SISE Committee and to the public. Project examples include:

• Creating a social enterprise,
• Launching an organization or movement with a social mission,
• Conducting community-based research,
• Producing a research paper, or
• Making a documentary or book.