Wesleyan’s Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship is pleased to announce the winners of the 2020 PCSE Seed Grant. These student-led social impact projects and ventures will each receive $5,000 in unrestricted funds as well as training, advising, mentoring, incubator workspace, and other resources from the Patricelli Center.
Recipients were selected from a pool of finalists who submitted written business plans and pitched to a panel of expert judges comprised of alumni, parents, students, faculty, and community partners. Applicants were assessed on their project design, leadership qualities, and potential for social impact.
The 2020 Seed Grant recipients are:
Mental Wealth Consulting (formerly Level Head, Level Up)
Inayah Bashir ’20
Mental Wealth Consulting expands conversations about mental wellness and mindfulness by offering three services that are adapted to community-specific needs: (a) Educating the Leaders (professional development), (b) Restorative Workshops (community programming), and (c) Curricular Resource Guides (curriculum for activities and classes). Our programming fosters resilience, wellness, and mental wealth.
Narratio
Ahmed Badr ‘20, Edward Grattan, Brice Nordquist, Gemma Cooper-Novack
Narratio activates, supports, and highlights the creative expression of displaced young people through publishing, fellowships, workshops, and partnerships. narratio.org
Opioid Harm Reduction Initiative
Livia Cox ’22, Nick Wells ’20
The rate of death due to opioid overdose in Connecticut is twice the national average (NIH, 2019). We provide resources and education to combat opioid overdose in high-risk communities across Connecticut. We form partnerships with local community leaders and offer socio-culturally attuned training, naloxone dissemination, and other scientifically proven grassroots prevention and rehabilitation measures.
These students and teams exemplify the spirit of innovation and impact shared by so many members of the Wesleyan community. They follow in a long line of successful Wesleyan-connected social projects and enterprises. We wish them well as they launch or scale their work, and we stand by to support their endeavors going forward.
The Seed Grant and other Patricelli Center programs are made possible by numerous donors and volunteers, including Propel Capital, Newman’s Own Foundation, and the Norman Ernst Priebatsch Endowed Fund for Entrepreneurship.
Video from the Seed Grant final pitches will be available on the PCSE video library and Facebook page in the coming weeks. For more information about the Patricelli Center for Social Entrepreneurship, visit http://www.wesleyan.edu/patricelli.