INSEAD MBAs Build Playgrounds For Underprivileged Kids

New students at the Singapore Campus took up the challenge of building a two play areas for the local Children's Aid Society in under three days!

INSEAD believes that social awareness is an essential quality for future business leaders

If you're an aspiring MBA who is keen on corporate social responsibility (CSR), INSEAD if offering students the chance to roll up their sleeves and build something for their community.

This month, incoming MBAs spent three days building playground facilities for a children’s home in Singapore.

The school added this component to its curriculum because it believes that creating social awareness and contributing to the community are essential to developing of business leaders.

The initiative invited 200 MBAs to work with Splash Projects, an organization that delivers tailored projects that combines experiential learning with corporate responsibility. The new class developed their teamwork and management skills while contributing to the local community.

Stephanie Vollemagne, Director of the MBA programme at INSEAD suggested that this was one of the biggest projects that INSEAD MBAs had worked on as a class. She said, "I think the main goal for us was building a project as a class. In the past MBAs have been involved in different projects but not to that scale".

In the space of three days, they built two playgrounds: one for children under the age of five and another for children under the age of seven, at Melrose Home, Children’s Aid Society Singapore.

Melrose home provides a supportive environment for children between the ages of four and 18 years, who require care and protection in a residential setting. These are children whose parents or family members are unable to provide care or to supervise them. The home can house up to 40 children and 25 teenagers.

The MBAs toiled in both rain and sunshine, and delivered the playgrounds as scheduled, turning the unused space into areas where children can play.

The end of the orientation programme doesn't mean that students no longer get involved with the local community. Students who still want to get involved with CSR can join INDEVOR, a student-led club that serves as a forum for those interested in social, environmental, and ethical issues, bridging the gap between business and the social sector.

Check out the new MBAs in action, and the children trying out their new playgrounds in the video below. It looks like the INSEAD newbies did a great job!

Comments

Post a comment You must sign-in or register to post a comment

There are no comments

Author:: Ifeatu Nnaobi
Published:: Tuesday 18th September 2012 14:13:00 GMT

INSEAD

Why you should join BUSINESSBECAUSE...

Connecting people before, during and after b-school

Build a network of useful connections
Gather information & get weekly newsletter
Get job and b-school application tips
Read real life stories published daily

Join us

Full Time MBA