3 Ways to Fund Social Innovation in Higher Ed

Both philanthropy and higher education are on the cusp of significant transformation. First, colleges and universities are being asked to prepare students at a time when the future of work is unclear and the value of knowledge seems to be diminished. The landscape of higher education is evolving to include practical training as well as theoretical underpinnings. We know students are hungry to begin practicing a craft sooner but want a less risky environment. Finally, we know that some of the most interesting innovations come from creative partnerships and interactions in multi-stakeholder contexts.

Similarly, how foundations and philanthropists approach strategic giving is changing. We are in the midst of a $42 trillion wealth transfer, and more capital is being distributed by more donors and in more ways than ever before in human history. From grants to impact investments, or from private foundations to donor-advised funds to LLCs, funders are using myriad levers to generate both innovation and impact.

However, there is significant potential for important social innovations at institutions of higher learning. To understand the opportunities, we need to first explore how innovation happens.

Where Innovation Comes From

Innovation is the outcome of different ideas and contexts meeting each other. Social innovation is similarly rooted in social change efforts, often co-created with different stakeholder groups, with different experiences and who have access to different forms of capital. Cheryl Kiser, executive director of The Lewis Institute, believes the key to understanding social innovation is to focus more on “social” than “innovation.” To achieve sustainable results, she explains, “we must start by creating multiple solutions through a spectrum of activities and strong collaborative relationships throughout the world. This benefits businesses, communities, citizens, and the environment — and truly creates positive social impact.”

Why Institutions of Higher Learning

Institutions of higher learning have three key criteria for fostering social innovation. First, institutions can be, by their very nature, incubators and accelerators of ideas. Colleges and universities have multifaceted and often deeply entwined missions, including their roles as facilitators of student learning and as research institutions for the betterment of human knowledge.

Second, they have both a stable population of in-house thought leaders and an ever-changing cohort of new thinkers asking important questions and sharing their contexts. The dynamics between professors, staff, and students — combined with the dual focus on learning and research — allows for new ideas to constantly flow through the college or university.

Finally, institutions of higher learning are anchor institutions built for learning and experimentation. As such, not only can they lower the risk in the launch of ideas, but they also have space to let ideas grow or fail. Their capacity allows for far cheaper acquisition of so much of the organizational infrastructure (e.g., physical space, internet access, subsidized software) that can be a major roadblock to a struggling but potentially successful innovative idea.

How to Fund Social Innovation at Institutions

Philanthropy too is changing. According to Michael Moody, co-author of Generation Impact: How Next Gen Donors Are Revolutionizing Giving, giving to large institutions and higher education has become less exciting to younger donors. They want to feel connected to the work — like they are offering their time and talents as well as their treasures — and large institutions can be hard to build a meaningful relationship with outside the development office. Younger donors also want to feel as though they are learning, meeting interesting people, and building meaningful connections. In this way, institutions of higher education are uniquely positioned to be enticing opportunities if they present themselves correctly.

Given all that we understand about social innovation and higher education, there are some novel and interesting ways to think about giving. The most interesting gifts are usually investing in the space, the time, and the capacity for diverse participants. However, understanding what that looks like and making decisions around it can be challenging as they are all deeply interrelated. Social innovation isn’t just a flash of an idea. More often than not it is lots of thinking, interacting, conferring, and observing that culminates in an idea that is tested, tweaked, and has time to evolve. Thus, donors need to consider making grants in a way that assumes the need for infrastructure, time, and uncertainty.

1. Investing in the space

Some might read that as my advocating for buildings. Although buildings certainly provide critical infrastructure, I’m referring to the space to explore ideas in compelling or novel ways. What’s key is a quality environment where ideas can run into each other, allowing an intellectually and experientially diverse group of people the capacity to work, think, and play together.

Investing philanthropic dollars in connections can be incredibly fruitful. Money to cover costs related to conference attendance, retreats, or multidisciplinary gatherings can yield enormous dividends. Consider funding the school’s capacity to be a key convener within the university or college community, as well as for the broader geographical or practice area ecosystem.

2. Investing in time

There are hundreds of years of advice rooted in feeling free to change one’s major, and exponentially more anecdotes about going to an event or discussion that transforms one’s perspective. Even research can be time-consuming, taking multiple cycles of trial and error before ideas can be considered seriously by the broader world.

Think about investing time and money in the patience to build an intangible infrastructure that yields important learning and research outcomes. Give money where the investment can be slow yet sustainable, and the impacts somewhat unexpected. That can look like multiyear commitments or general operating support to a program or project. Not only does this reaffirm the unique role that institutions of higher learning play in our society, but it also indicates a commitment to the broader undertaking of fostering a healthier world. Put another way, giving provides the space to be creative along with the confidence of a committed partner.

3. Investing in the journey

The most crucial part of considering funding social innovation at higher education institutions is to remember that this work is not about the donor, but about the collection of people, experiences, and environmental factors that culminate in the discovery of solutions.

Find a project or program that you’re passionate about, and then find out what it needs to yield the greatest results. Consider not restricting the funding. Or, if you do restrict it, consider earmarking it for things like reasonable pay for adjunct faculty, sabbaticals, or other opportunities that often get low priority. Be willing and excited to be a part of the journey, and be okay with a bit of uncertainty about how it will play out.

As you will see from examples in these next few pages, most of the funders have been engaged in the journey of furthering thought leadership, student experiences, the development of new content, and the cultivation of new relationships for Babson College. Each funder provided the flexibility and trust in the entrepreneurial process to achieve unexpected and fruitful outcomes.