Volunteers garner back-to-back wins for USC Marshall

For the second year in a row, the USC Marshall School of Business has been honored with a U.S. President’s Volunteer Service Award from Junior Achievement USA in recognition of MBA students’ work with Challenge 4 Charity (C4C).

USC Marshall earned the 2014-15 award at the bronze level for contributing more than 5,000 hours to local Junior Achievement offices during the academic year. That puts the school in good company with Microsoft, JP Morgan Chase, General Motors, FedEx and American Express, among other corporate giants. USC Marshall was one of 60 organizations to be recognized by Junior Achievement.

“This is wonderful news and a testament to the volunteer work that our MBA students perform throughout the year,” said USC Marshall Dean James G. Ellis. “Our students’ dedication to service and learning goes above and beyond, on campus and in the community, and we are proud and supportive of their achievements. Junior Achievement’s mission and our students’ expertise are a perfect fit.”

Educating youth

Junior Achievement works to educate youth about financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship in more than 120 countries, serving over 10 million students annually. Eighty percent of those students are at schools in low- or middle-income neighborhoods.

USC Marshall students in the full-time MBA and MBA.PM programs have volunteer-taught Junior Achievement programs to thousands of K-12 students in local schools for more than 10 years, making them the largest grad school contributor to Junior Achievement worldwide. USC Marshall MBAs volunteer hours and raise money for Junior Achievement through C4C, a nonprofit organization that engages eight elite West Coast business schools in a yearlong volunteer, fundraising and athletic competition.

The President’s Council on Service and Civic Participation was established by President George W. Bush in 2003 to recognize the contributions volunteers make in communities and to encourage more people to serve. It created the President’s Volunteer Service Award program as a way to thank and honor Americans who, by their demonstrated commitment and example, inspire others to engage in volunteer service. In 2006, Junior Achievement became an official certifying organization for this award, which recognizes corporations with a U.S. presence that provide volunteers to teach Junior Achievement programs anywhere in the world.

USC Marshall will be honored at an awards ceremony at the Junior Achievement USA Volunteer Summit event in New York City on March 8.