Berkeley, California, University of Walter A. Haas School of Business

No other university in the world has as rich a history of social thought leadership and of challenging students to think beyond traditional paradigms of business, society and the environment as the University of California, Berkeley -- the academic epicenter of social movements. Since its founding in 1898, Berkeley�s Haas School of Business has been a central force in this pursuit by graduating MBAs with skills to make the most of the economic opportunities available to them, and the values to share what they create.

To fulfill this mission, Haas has raised social and environmental stewardship to an unprecedented level. It overhauled the MBA curriculum in 2002, bringing a pioneering �Ethics and Responsibility in Business� course back to the core, and established over 25 socially and environmentally-focused electives like �Responsibility in Entering Emerging Markets� and �Corporate Environmental Management.� It reaches the broadest range of students by integrating social impact topics into Financial Engineering, Management of Technology, Real Estate, Entrepreneurship, International and Health Management programs.

To attract the very best students, faculty and partnerships in corporate social responsibility stewardship, Haas launched the Center for Responsible Business in 2003 � with astounding results. The Center boasts of one of the county�s most innovative courses, �Strategic CSR & Projects�, which connects students to senior executives at powerful firms like Nike, Gap Inc., Microsoft, Altria, and Hewlett-Packard to develop strategies that create competitive advantage through positive social impact. Along with rave reviews from students, corporate partners have responded with overwhelming zeal through additional project opportunities and job offers to Haas graduates. Due to their project successes, Gap, Inc. even funded a new Gap CSR Fellows Program to attract CSR-focused applicants to Haas.

Haas� faculty lead by example. Over ten percent have served in government, including Tom Campbell, Finance Director of California; Laura Tyson, President�s Council of Economic Advisors; and Janet Yellen, President of the San Francisco Federal Reserve Bank. These leaders continually engage in meaningful dialogue with students about how business works successfully with government to improve society.

Outside the classroom, MBAs develop low-income housing projects every year and conduct research on the correlation between corporate social and corporate financial performance. Five MBA students started the Haas Social Venture Competition in 1999. Today, this program is a global partnership and awards over $100,000 in prizes to help MBAs around the world launch businesses that create positive social impact.

Haas also boasts the Young Entrepreneurs At Haas (YEAH) program. YEAH's goal is to educate and excite under-served youth toward achievement of higher education using principles of business, finance and entrepreneurship. Haas MBA students serve as the youth mentors, and develop the curriculum and teach the courses through low-income middle- and high-schools. Today, 100% of the young people involved in YEAH do go on to higher education due to the success of our MBA mentors.