Robert Hogner<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nSimilarly, in one short year, FIU Micro-Lenders has rapidly progressed and succeeded. Having begun as a community service project in the Business in Society<\/em> course, part of the College of Business Administration\u2019s BBA+ Weekend program, it already has become an official student organization, is in the process of becoming a 501(c)(3) non-profit Florida corporation, and has formed partnerships to increase its impact. This fall semester, a team from FIU Micro-Lenders is working to integrate the service project across the entire BBA+ Weekend curriculum and is forming a partnership with Great Florida Bank.<\/p>\n\u201cFIU Micro-Lenders is a project that\u2019s building the road as it moves down it,\u201d said Robert Hogner<\/strong>, associate professor, Department of Management and International Business, coordinator of the college\u2019s Civic Engagement Initiative, and instructor, Business in Society<\/em>. \u201cWe have a general idea of the direction we\u2019re going in, with each class improving the operations and taking on special fundraising and public relations roles.\u201d<\/p>\nLatest fundraiser focuses on book drive.<\/em><\/p>\nFor example, the current BBA+ Weekend group has organized book drop offs, not only on campus but also at various sites throughout Miami-Dade and Broward Counties. They sell the books\u2014ranging from textbooks to children\u2019s books\u2014via an Amazon.com account.<\/p>\n
\u201cOne book may only be worth $5 or $10, but as we gather more, it really helps,\u201d said Romina Tripichio<\/strong>, student coordinator, SER Jobs for Progress; with Mariangle Calcoya<\/strong>, purchasing manager and corporate officer, Darmiven, Inc., adding, \u201cIf everyone in Miami-Dade County alone donated $5, or a book, imagine what we could do for the rest of the world.\u201d<\/p>\nFIU Micro-Lenders<\/figcaption><\/figure>\nRicardo De La Paz<\/strong>, controller, Bernstein & Maryanoff, agreed.<\/p>\n\u201cFive dollars won\u2019t make a difference in your daily life but it will make a difference in someone else\u2019s,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
The $5 figure keeps coming up and sounds impossibly miniscule, but, \u201cThat\u2019s the premise of micro finance: that we can empower others through very small loans,\u201d said Frank C. McGuinness<\/strong>, IT strategist, Miami Herald<\/em>; BBA+ Weekend Group 24 class president; and future president of the non-profit.<\/p>\nInternational focus supports college\u2019s mission.<\/em><\/p>\nWhile many aspects of the effort stand out, Hogner notes in particular that FIU Micro-Lenders is \u201can international service project that doesn\u2019t require air travel, while giving students the kind of international exposure appropriate for the college\u2019s international business and management emphasis.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
For recipients of micro loans, a small amount of money and a short amount of time can transform their lives. Similarly, in one short year, FIU Micro-Lenders has rapidly progressed and succeeded. Having begun as a community service project in the Business in Society course, part of the College of Business Administration\u2019s BBA+ Weekend program, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":32,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[13,14],"tags":[901,947,1740,1902,2236,2299],"amp_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/976"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/32"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=976"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/976\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":28708,"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/976\/revisions\/28708"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=976"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=976"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/biznews.fiu.edu\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=976"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}