The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA

Abstract #59743

Stephen Noyes Orton, PhD¹, Karl E. Umble, PhD², Janet Porter, PhD¹, James Johnson, PhD³, and Thomas C. Ricketts, PhD, MPH⁴. (1) NC Institute for Public Health, UNC School of Public Health, CB# 8165, Tate-Turner-Kuralt Bldg., Chapel Hill, NC 27599-8165, 919 966-8125, stephen_orton@unc.edu, (2) Center for Distance Learning, UNC-Chapel Hill School of Public Health, Campus Box 7400, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, (3) University of North Carolina, Kenan Flagler Business School, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, (4) Cecil G. Sheps Center for Health Services Research, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 725 Airport Road, Chapel Hill, NC 27599

Civic entrepreneurship (CE) is gaining currency among government and business leaders, and refers to a set of concepts that help non-profit and government agencies offer greater and more sustainable services by thinking and acting like business entrepreneurs, rather than relying on short-term grants and tenuous government funding. CE might mean collaborating with a local company and charging for community health services; negotiating a deal with a company to make a large donation in exchange for exclusive use of their products; and developing other kinds of public-private partnerships to expand, retain, and create value. It also means being financially astute and skilled; engaging in strategic planning and market research; and a host of related skills.

Management Academy for Public Health, a 4-year public-private demonstration project, has successfully taught CE concepts and skills to local public health staff in 4 southeastern states, and has developed knowledge of (1) how to develop staff in these concepts and skills, and (2) what entrepreneurial practice in public health can be. This presentation will teach the CE concept, how MAPH has transferred it to the field, learners' points of view about CE's worth, and programmatic and funding results.

Learning Objectives:

• Learners will be able to:
• Define civic entrepreneurship and give several examples of community health initiatives that use the concept.
• Explain the educational strategies that the Management Academy for Public Health has successfully transferred this concept into public health thinking and practice among local public health agencies throughout the Southeast.

Keywords: Management and Sustainability, Professional Training

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I have a significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.
Relationship: Employment