For the past 25 years, CASE Advisory Board Member and CEO and co-founder of The Redwoods Group, Kevin Trapani, has had a consistent career goal: to be regarded as the worst CEO in his company’s history.
To many, this career goal may seem strange. For Trapani, however, having subsequent leaders that continue to strengthen the company’s mission of using business for good is his biggest hope.
“At Redwoods, we believe that business can and should be a powerful force for positive social change, which is why we are using data to help insure and lower risk for youth-serving organizations and why we went through the process of becoming a certified B Corporation,” said Trapani.
By definition, a certified B Corporation is a business that meets the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose. The Redwoods Group represents just one of the many for-profit businesses that are becoming certified and using their expertise to solve some of society’s most challenging problems.
“Creating lasting positive impact takes an ecosystem approach, with government, nonprofits and businesses all playing their part,” said Bart Houlahan, CASE Advisory Board Member and Co-Founder of B Lab, a nonprofit that supports people using business as a force for good. “I believe that, with the increase of for-profit impact enterprises and certified B Corporations, we will be able to solve global challenges in ways that we never thought possible.”
To reflect the growing number of certified B Corporations and for-profit enterprises generating positive social impact, Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business has expanded the eligibility requirements for the Rex and Ellen Adams Loan Assistance Program (LAP) to include alumni who work at certified B Corporations and has increased the potential loan forgiveness amount to up to $15,000 annually.
The Loan Assistance Program is designed to support alumni pursuing a social impact career by providing financial assistance in the form of loan forgiveness awards. Established thanks to the generosity and vision of the Duke MBA–Daytime Class of 2001, the LAP has traditionally offered financial support to Duke MBA-Daytime alumni who work full-time for eligible nonprofit and government organizations. With a generous gift from the F.M. Kirby Foundation in 2017, the program has continued to grow, which has made it possible to both extend the opportunity to Duke MBA-Daytime alumni who work full-time for eligible certified B Corporations and increase the possible award amount to $15,000 annually for all qualifying individuals.
With these new changes to the program, the LAP application deadline for 2019 has been extended until Monday, December 16. Eligible alumni are encouraged to learn more about the eligibility requirements and application on Fuqua’s financial aid web page. With questions or for more information, please email fuqua-lap@duke.edu.