A business professor from my alma mater was recently telling me about a new program at the School of Business, called "social entrepreneurship." What is a "social entrepreneur"? Well, the online encyclopedia, Wikipedia, defines a "social entrepreneur" as:

"… someone who recognizes a social problem and uses entrepreneurial principles to organize, create, and manage a venture to make social change. Whereas business entrepreneurs typically measure performance in profit and return, social entrepreneurs assess their success in terms of the impact they have on society. While social entrepreneurs often work through nonprofits and citizen groups, many work in the private and governmental sectors."

Essentially, social entrepreneurs kill "two birds (or more) with one stone" by providing a needed service and/or product to the community, while addressing other civic issues all at the same time. As the definition states, success is not measured in dollars but in the company or group's impact.

In my opinion, one prime example of social entrepreneurship is located in Greene County's neighbor to the east: Monroe County. The not-for-profit organization I'm thinking of is called Bloomington Restorations, Inc.

What do they do?

Bloomington Restorations, Inc. does a number of things for the community, but it seems to me that they really help address these areas through their work:

*Blighted properties

*Historic preservation

*Affordable housing

*Improving neighborhoods

In many instances, this group will purchase a historic, yet neglected property in the community. Through donations and grants, they revitalize the property while also keeping true to the historic architecture of the exterior of the home. Upon completion, they market the home for typically much less than the total dollars invested in the remodeling (that's where the donations and grants come into play). The buyer agrees to keep the historic architecture of the home's exterior intact, and they also agree not to sell the property for a profit for a set number of years.

When you look at the big picture, this not-for-profit group takes a once-blighted property, revitalizes it, improves the overall neighborhood by doing so, addresses affordable housing issues, and maintains historic homes for future generations -- all at the same time. Throw in the fact that materials, supplies, and labor can be purchased locally to have an even more positive economic impact, and you really have a wonderful program!

To learn more about this organization, visit their website at: http://www.bloomingtonrestorations.org/

It seems to me that we could use a group like that here. What do you think Greene County?