Social Entrepreneurship in Health

This past Thursday (4/16), four of the Transdisciplinary Service-Learning Program participants (three BU students and a Franklin Field community resident) shared their experiences in the program with the Codman Square Health Council. This presentation and feedback session was part of our commitment as a community-academic partnership that incorporates action and reflection from both community and academic partners.

The BU students shared passionate stories about why they chose to participate, the work they have done, what they have learned, and how they hope the program might develop in the future. The Franklin Field resident spoke about her experiences with the students, the context in which the program is operating (ex. “The Franklin Field community is strong and is ‘up-and-coming’”), and how she felt the program could best contribute to the community in the future.

Community members from the council then had the opportunity to ask questions about the program and to pose challenges for the team as they move forward. “What are your measurable outcomes?” “How will you ensure sustainability?” “How will you address root causes of social disparities through systems-changing action?” “How will you empower residents?” These questions and more came up and a lively discussion followed that spilled past the official meeting closure at 5:30pm.

As we move forward with this program, we hope to incorporate some of the ideas presented at the meeting and to continue our relationship with the Codman Square Health Council in order to provide a critical “check” from the community residents about the program’s activities.

We are in the process of scheduling a similar meeting with Boston University stakeholders and will be sure to update you once this has been arranged.