Jerry is the founder and Executive Director of the Global Center for Social Entrepreneurship at the University of the Pacific in Stockton, CA. His responsibilities include management and administration of the Center, program design and development, formation of the Council of University Social Entrepreneurs (student arm of the Center), establishment of the Board of Stakeholders which comprise of social entrepreneurship professionals, development of the Mentorship Program, creation of the privately funded Ambassador Corps international internship program, liaison with local non-profit organizations, and design and development of the first community-based microfinance fund in the Central Valley of California.

Previously, Jerry was the CEO for 17 years of the Katalysis Partnership, a microfinance organization that provides training, technical assistance, and credit to non-governmental microfinance institutions (MFIs) in Central America (Guatemala, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador). The Katalysis Network of 22 MFIs provides microloans to over 275,000 clients (70% women; 97 % repayment). Prior to Katalysis, Jerry was the regional field director for International Voluntary Services, based on the island of Antigua, where he directed a socio-economic development program on ten newly independent island-nations in the Eastern Caribbean. His work in grassroots economic development started in Appalachia (West Virginia coal mining region) where he worked for 10 years to develop and direct the first rural Economic Development Corporation in the U.S. to finance community-based business enterprises in a chronically depressed region of the U.S. Jerry was one of pioneering Peace Corps volunteers in the early 60’s where he worked for two years in the altiplano of Peru with Aymara Indians on the shores of Lake Titicaca.

Spencer is the Assistant Director of the Global Center for Social Entrepreneurship at the University of the Pacific. In this role, he is responsible for the management of the Center’s 15 student and sustainability initiatives which include the Ambassador Corps Fellowship Program, Integrated Development Group, Certificate Program in Social Entrepreneurship, and community development programs among many others. He was previously an instructor of English and International Relations at the College of Foreign Languages in Hue, Vietnam and has worked for a wide range of public organizations including the San Joaquin County Public Defender’s office and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Cabinet. He currently serves on the Board of Directors for the Friends of Hue Foundation (FHF) in Hue, Vietnam. FHF is a nonprofit, non-governmental social enterprise organization committed to youth and economic development. He earned his Bachelors of Arts degree in International Relations, Chinese, and Economics from the University of the Pacific’s School of International Studies. He has traveled extensively throughout the developing world and has an interest in studying economic development within emerging markets. Spencer speaks Mandarin and Cantonese Chinese and enjoys traveling, cooking, and good conversations.

Martin Burt founded Fundacion Paraguaya and brought an innovative microcredit program to Paraguay in 1985, while the country was under dictatorial rule that made citizen initiatives a particularly challenging and even dangerous undertaking. Over the years, Fundacion Paraguaya has supported 35,000 micro entrepreneurs who create 19,000 new jobs each year, and it has taking on innovative and entrepreneurial challenges through a Junior Achievement program that builds the skills of young entrepreneurs. Its agricultural school is breaking new ground by demonstrating that well-managed, sustainable agriculture can be profitable and by helping young people learn to think of themselves as rural entrepreneurs. Martin is a Pacific alum and is currently the visiting professor of Social Entrepreneurship. He has been recognized with the following international honors: Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship, Inter-American Development Bank Award of Excellence for Social Enterprise, and the Schwab Foundation Social Entrepreneur Award.

Sophia currently serves as Administrative Associate for the Global Center for Social Entrepreneurship, in Stockton, CA and serves as assistant to the Executive Director and provides oversight and management on all fiscal operations and oversees the Center’s Funding Resource Center. She earned a Bachelor’s of Arts Degree in Sociology from the University of the Pacific’s College of the Pacific (Arts and Science Division). Sophia is deeply vested in the issues of racial inequality and poverty within her community and currently works with a number of community organizations in developing sustainability strategies.

Hareem Cheema oversees all marketing and design activities for the Global Center for Social Entrepreneurship. Hareem was born in Lahore, Pakistan. She spent some of her childhood in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia and later moved to the United States at the age of seven. She is a recent Fall 2009 graduate from the University of the Pacific in Stockton, California with a BFA in Graphic Design and a minor in Business Management. She resides in Concord, CA with her parents. In her free time, she likes to travel, paint and bake.

Caitlin Vo oversees the web strategy and design of the Global Center website, www.globalctr.org and its affiliate sites. Caitlin Vo is a Pre-Pharmacy student at the University of the Pacific. She will be attending Thomas J. Long School of Pharmacy working towards her Doctor of Pharmacy degree in 2013. Caitlin speaks, reads, and writes Vietnamese fluently. She cofounded the Vietnamese Cancer Awareness Research and Education Society (VNCARES) Undergraduate Chapter at University of the Pacific in 2007. She has been involved in a variety of activities that focuses on the effect of cultural background on the health of the Vietnamese population in the Stockton community through VNCARES. As vice president and clinical manager, she took part in research and awareness education aimed at improving health awareness within the Asian community. Since then she has decided to concentrate on social entrepreneurial ventures with a special interest in providing website development services to non-profit organizations that are in need. She has successfully build numerous websites, some of which includes Kylosa Hosting Services, Pacific VNCARES’, Global Center for Social and Entrepreneurship, and a personal web and graphics resource website that she currently manages and provides non-profit premade graphics for those with limited web development skills.

Margaret Fielder is an International Relations student at the School of International Studies within Stockton’s University of the Pacific. A native of Modesto, California, Ms. Fielder has had a significant amount of experience working with various on campus organizations, businesses, law firms, and nonprofits within the Central Valley. Her talents include research, creating analytical spreadsheets, planning and hosting large-scale events, crafting project proposals, secretarial services, accounting, legal writing, and proficiency in Mandarin Chinese. She is an avid member of the University Council of Social Entrepreneurs, and has been employed by Pacific’s Global Center for Social Entrepreneurship for the last four semesters. In addition, she is a member of the Pacific Legal Scholars Program, Alpha Lambda Delta, the prestigious Sophomore Cohort group, and has made Dean’s Honor Roll every semester of college. In her spare time Ms. Fielder enjoys running, movies, and volunteering with local Stockton and Modesto organizations.

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Andria Ellis is a senior civil engineering and geology student at University of the Pacific in Stockton, CA, and plans to graduate in May 2011. Her motivation to pursue these technical degrees is fueled by her goals to provide real solutions to real problems through the development and implementation of stable and secure technologies that may help improve lives and the environment. While maintaining an attitude of optimism and levity, she believes in taking risks that have the potential for character building and personal growth. She also strives to continually develop as an individual, professional, student, family member, and friend. She was a participant in the Ambassador Corps Fellowship program and spent three months during the summer of 2010 in Bangalore, India, assisting with housing and sanitary infrastructure projects for the urban poor. In her spare time, Andria enjoys ultra-light backpacking, playing old-time fiddle, journaling, creating wheel-thrown ceramics, exercising, shooting firearms, travelling, and spending time with her family.

Youa is a student at the University of the Pacific pursuing a double Bachelor of Arts in Political Science and Economics and a Bachelor of Science in Applied Mathematics. He is interested in how government policies and business practices can create a sustainable environment for economic development. Youa has interned in the nation’s capitol for Hmong National Development (HND), where he participated in multiple conferences and meetings on capacity building, economic development, and social justice. He has also interned in California’s capitol for the California Healthcare Foundation, where he researched sustainable policies for health outcomes. Over the summer, Youa worked with the Fresno Interdenominational Refugees Ministries (FIRM), where he was also given the opportunity to coordinate activities and events involving several organizations. Youa also has five years of experience as a market supervisor for his parents’ business which has given him experience in customer service, marketing, and accounting. On his spare time, Youa enjoys playing sports, fishing, and playing the guitar.

Hunter Tanous is student of International Relations at the University of the Pacific. Hunter views IDP as a great model for using university resources and knowledge in a way that will give students professional experience while improving the community. He believes that social entrepreneurship is the revolution that is needed in the world of development to change perspectives from donor views to recipient needs. He believes that social entrepreneurship is means by which all good intensions can be developed into results that make a difference. He is a co-founder of Pacific’s first Foreign Service Fraternity Delta Phi Epsilon, co-founder of the Pacific chapter, Ties to The World, which is social entrepreneurial organization,. Hunter has served as the ASuop Coordinator for Campus and Community affairs. Through Pacific, the Global Center, and the Council of University Social Entrepreneurs, Hunter has participated in various workshops dealing with everything from fundraising, to grant writing, to obtaining a 501 c3. He has been able to attend conferences on Social Entrepreneurship, participate in Model UN in Washington, DC, and been part of the Pacific Lacrosse and Crew teams. Hunter has lived in Argentina, Jordan and Syria and visited various countries in Latin America, Europe and the Middle East. He speaks Spanish and Arabic. He enjoys anything new and creative, ideas that make a positive impact, and surfing.

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