Commitments to spark and accelerate more than 200,000 changemakers

Washington, DC, July 19^th, 2019 —Leading academic institutions, ecosystem building organizations, and individuals across 14 countries announce today a total of 73 commitments to activate #MillionsofChangemakers.

These new commitments will directly spark and accelerate more than 200,000 changemakers and indirectly impact millions more.  The commitments represent some of the most innovative work being done across higher education to graduate the changemakers the world needs.

The announcements are being made as part of Ashoka U’s #MillionsofChangemakers campaign, launched with support from Schmidt Futures.  The work of each commitment maker contributes to Ashoka’s vision of creating a world where everyone is a changemaker.

In an Everyone a Changemaker™ world, all people have the confidence, skills, and freedom to create change for the good of all. The world is both more resilient and more inclusive because each person – regardless of age or background – plays a role in shaping the future.

This announcement showcases the critical role that colleges and universities play in helping society achieve this vision. The commitments announced today represent deep partnerships across and between institutions and their communities, and a commitment to work together to collectively spark and accelerate #MillionsofChangemakers.

Commitments include the engagement of:

• 203,000 individuals in changemaker experiences that spark a sense of motivation and empowerment to take action for the greater good,
• 13,000 students who will also have an opportunity to practice changemaking as part of their college or university experience.
• 26 institutions making commitments that will make their campus an environment where more changemakers can thrive, and
• 12 organizations making commitments to strengthen the changemaker ecosystem in higher education.

A sample of commitments includes:

• The University of New Hampshire in the U.S. committing to grow participation in changemaker curricular and co-curricula programs to 25% of all UNH students (4,000) by 2025.
• Ashoka Canada, Colleges and Institutes Canada, McConnell Foundation (Re-Code), and Universities Canada committing to forming the Canadian Post-Secondary Education Collective (CPSEC) to foster collaborative approaches to social impact/changemaking within the post-secondary ecosystem in Canada.
• Tecnológico de Monterrey’s HUB for innovative social entrepreneurship at Guadalajara in Mexico committing to a 7 city expansion of their Changemaker Day festival – a two-day event that engages hundreds of students to celebrate changemaking.
• The University of Evansville in the U.S. committing to offer over $1M in changemaker scholarships annually to 75 students (from $18,000/yr for 4 years, up to full tuition for 4 years) who participate in their High School Changemaker Challenge.

“These commitments represent only a fraction of the incredible work happening at each of these institutions, and at many more not recognized here” said Jessica Lax, Ashoka U’s Growth & Partnerships Director. “But there is still much work to be done.  Today we recognize and celebrate the work of these commitment makers and call on all post-secondary institutions to consider how they can use their assets to help solve global problems and support students to thrive in a rapidly changing world.”

The list of 2019 commitment makers is included below. View complete commitments sorted by country or focus area here.

 

Agnes Scott College	Oberlin College
Algonquin College	Peter Milley, Associate Professor, University of Ottawa
Antonio Meneghetti College	Ohio State University
Ashoka Canada	Presidio Graduate School
Ashoka Mexico, Centroamerica y el Caribe	Project Invent
BRAC University Centre for Emotional Intelligence & Innovation	Project Wayfinder
Capilano University, IDEA School of Design	RE-CODE, McConnell Foundation
Carnegie Mellon University, Integrated Innovation Institute Silicon Valley Campus	Red Rocks Community College
Centennial College, Centre for Global Citizenship Education and Inclusion	Rochester Institute of Technology
Coding it Forward	Rollins College
College for Social Innovation	Santo Tomás University
Colleges & Institutes Canada	SIMA Classroom
Dibyabhumi Multiple College affiliated to Tribhuvan University	Simon Fraser University
Drake University	Social Change Innovators
Elon University	Social Entrepreneurship Akademie
Florida International University	SWPS University of Social Sciences and Humanities
Fordham University	Tecnológico de Monterrey, Guadalajara
Georgian College	Texas A&M International University
Global Citizen Year	The Evergreen State College
Hanyang University	Universidad de Monterrey
HKUST Connect, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology	Universidad del Desarrollo
Impact Labs	Universidad Popular Autónoma del Estado de Puebla (UPAEP)
Koc University	Universities Canada
Loyola University Chicago, Baumhart Center	University of Evansville
Marymount University, Saints’ Center for Service	University of Florida
Memorial University, Faculty of Business Administration	University of Houston, SURE Program
Miami Dade College	University of New Hampshire
MOOTS	University of Northampton, Changemaker Hub
Mount Royal University	University of Rochester, Barbara J. Burger iZone
National Science Policy Network	University of San Diego
Nazareth College	University of Virginia
North Carolina State University	Valencia College
North Central College	Watson Institute
	Wingate University

Read their full commitments here.

 

 

About #MillionsofChangemakers

#MillionsofChangemakers is Ashoka U’s global call for colleges, universities, and higher education innovators to make commitments to spark and accelerate changemakers of all kinds.  Commitment makers will submit progress updates in February 2020, and exceptional commitment makers will receive awards at the 2020 Ashoka U Exchange.

About Ashoka U

Ashoka U is the higher education initiative of Ashoka – the world’s largest community of changemakers. Since 2008, Ashoka U has worked with more than 500 colleges and universities to help build a world where everyone is a changemaker. 

About Schmidt Futures

Schmidt Futures is a philanthropic initiative, founded by Eric and Wendy Schmidt, that bets early on people who will make our world better — helping people to achieve more for others by applying advanced science and technology thoughtfully and by working together across fields. 

 Contact:

Jessica Lax, Growth & Partnerships Director, Ashoka U

[email protected]

 

Join many of the commitment makers at the Ashoka U Exchange – an annual conference that brings together 700+ higher education innovators, or in the Ashoka U Commons – an online virtual accelerator designed for faculty and staff.

Sign up here to be notified for application deadlines, including the opportunity to submit your commitment as part of the 2020 #MillionsofChangemakers campaign.