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Brandeis University (Heller)

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Brandeis University (Heller) 415 South Street
Waltham, MA, 02454
United States
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Demographic Information

Number of full-time MBA students (2011): 

28

Number of part-time MBA students (2011): 

5

Total duration of full-time MBA program: 

16 months

MBA faculty (Fall 2010): 

15

Females as percent of student body: 

79%
Who Are the Students? See what percentage of the 2010-2011 graduating class came to this MBA program from the private sector, the non-profit sector and government jobs
 
Private Sector (10%)
 
Non-profit (90%)
 
Government (0%)


Description of MBA Program: 

The Heller MBA program was born and grew up in the Heller School for Social Policy and Management at Brandeis University, a world-renowned school dedicated to social justice issues. The Heller School was founded just over fifty years ago and was named after Florence Heller, a social worker and community activist. The mission of the Heller School is ‘Knowledge Advancing Social Justice.’ As we like to say – social justice is in our genes. Every student at Heller, no matter which continent they come from or which program they have chosen, is on a mission to make the world a better place. So, the Heller MBA is quite unique in that it was founded based upon the principles of delivering education related to social, ethical and environmental issues and then rigorous core management skills were added to form the MBA curriculum (in contrast to MBA programs born in traditional business schools).

The Heller MBA is preparing the next generation of managers to lead organizations in the pursuit of social missions in the non-profit, for-profit and public sectors.  The Heller School's high standards for management education and its history of excellent policy research and activism are important assets for people contemplating careers as leaders of organizations with a social mission.

The Heller MBA provides students with the skills necessary to lead organizations that are pursuing multiple bottom lines: meeting financial goals, fostering staff development, preserving the environment, and working to resolve society's most pressing problems. The Heller MBA prepares students to be leaders and decision-makers who can find resources and use them efficiently and effectively to help underserved and vulnerable populations, and to improve social and environmental outcomes more broadly.

The Heller MBA's 16-month structure condenses two years of curriculum into four consecutive intense semesters of learning, ideal for people who want to return to work quickly and put their ideas into action.

The curriculum offers a full range of management courses.  Through these courses, students gain the working knowledge to meet the practical challenges they will face when managing for a social mission.  All core MBA courses from Leadership and Organizational Behavior to Corporate Finance are taught from the perspective of mission-driven organizations and the special skills needed to lead these organizations.  Students also take non-traditional courses like Social Justice and Management to develop their own perspective on social justice and to incorporate that perspective into their role as manager; and Social Policy Frameworks, to develop their ability to analyze, evaluate and advocate for the policies that are critical to the social mission of their organization.  In addition, MBA students specialize in one of five management concentrations -- Social Policy & Management; Social Impact Management; Health Care Management; Child, Youth, Family Services Management; or Sustainable Development.



How does the MBA program 'walk the talk' of social and environmental impact?: 

Brandeis University has been at the forefront of implementing sustainability programs, long before this topic received national attention. As Louis Brandeis, the founder of the University, was passionate about social causes, it is natural that the entire Brandeis community had the foresight to see environmental concerns very early on.  A summary of these efforts is described in the following paragraphs.

Brandeis is a charter signatory to the American College & University Presidents Climate Commitment, a national effort of hundred of Universities. In Fall of 2009, the Brandeis Climate Action Plan was released, outlining plans to neutralize greenhouse gas emissions. Actions towards this impressive goal currently include: a 171 KW Solar PV system, a comprehensive energy efficiency program, behavioral change campaigns, alternative transportation incentives and programs and much more.

Waste Reduction & Recycling

Two years ago, the president of Brandeis prohibited the use of plastic water bottles at all meetings, events and in student cafeterias. Students are given reusable water bottles to help break the bottled water habit. All waste from dining facilities is sent to a commercial composting facility. The end of the year Give & Go donation drive reduces student waste and provides reusable items during the Move in Market.

Renewable Clean Energy

One of the largest Solar Electricity systems in Massachusetts was installed in January 2010 on the Gosman gym. The 171 KW solar panel array annually produces enough electricity to power 30 average homes. The university purchases 15 percent of its electricity demands from GreenE certified off-site wind power and is researching a campus wind turbine, as well as other ways to use renewable energy.

Green Buildings

All new construction is built to LEED Silver Standards, a green building standard resulting in energy savings and increased use of local materials.

Transportation

Commuters are encouraged by Green Commuter Days to walk, bike, take transit, and carpool to work. ‘Deis Bikes provides free bike rentals run by student volunteers. ZipCar is a campus carsharing program. A public transit brochure (PDF), written by students, is available around campus and online. The University is also partnering with neighboring organizations to provide local shuttle buses to and from public transit stations in the Metro Boston area.

Sustainability Education & Action

Eco-Reps conduct peer education in their dorms-  helping to obtain over 30%  student participation in declaring a Certified Green Room. Students participate in many campus clubs such as S.E.A. to educate, volunteer, and make changes.

Food

An on-campus Farmers Market, organized by students in the Greening the Ivory Tower brings fresh local produce to the community and the Patchwork Garden is a campus organic vegetable garden. Dinning services works to provide local and vegetarian options.

HellerSAVE

HellerSAVE (Sustainability, Awareness and Valuing the Environment) is an environmental initiative of the Heller School; its mission is to work cooperatively with the entire Heller community—students, staff, and faculty—to maximize the level of environmental responsibility practiced by the Heller School. Numerous programs are tremendously successful, such as Coffee with the Dean, a monthly event, which requires you to bring your own coffee mug!

Academics & Community Outreach

Students in the Greening the Ivory Tower go outside the classroom to create innovative projects including wetlands protection, environmental education for low income children, and labeling storm drains to prevent pollution. Academic programs and internships are available in Green Business, Sustainability Development, and Environmental Studies. The Brandeis Sustainability Fund provides grants, advice and support to any student for their projects promoting sustainability. Projects that receive funding could relate to energy efficiency, green buildings, waste management, renewable energy purchases, or greening student events.

Energy Efficiency

Since 2004, the Energy Savings Program has saved millions of dollars through energy efficient lighting, steam line improvements, and energy management systems.
 

Academic Department

Course Name: Social Justice and the Obama Administration
Instructor: Anita Hill

The purpose of this course is to critically examine, from a social justice perspective, current writing and debates on the policy initiatives offered by and available to the administration of President Barack Obama. The topic areas include the economy/housing, education, health and international affairs/human rights as presented by a series of speakers through writings. In addition to a presentation of proposed administration policy positions, the course will introduce alternatives from sources outside of government. As well, the course will present examples of public opinion/popular thinking about the issues as part of the discussion. Each topic will have race and gender as part of the consideration integrated into the policies and not as separate, civil rights, discussions.

The objective of this course is to engage students in critical thinking, dialogue, and debate about policies and issues the new administration must address as well as to help you develop alternatives to the administration’s proposals. As an initial offering and given the array of issues confronting the administration, the topics are deliberately broad. In addition to understanding the basics of each topic area, discussion will focus on specific responses and whether or how the select communities in the United States and elsewhere are impacted by the problems as well as the interrelationship between the topics explored in the class. I have outlined below my ideas for the course, but all of the readings will likely not be set far in advance because policies are now being developed.

Course Name: Social Justice, Management and Policy
Instructor: Sarita Bhalotra

This course provides MBA students with the opportunity to explore the management implications of "Knowledge Advancing Social Justice." We do this by examining historical and contemporary thinkers, justice issues and management activities, and by actively grappling with the daily management dilemmas faced by managers and change agents both inside and outside organizations.

Social Justice means different things to different people, in different places, and at different times. It is invoked to support and justify a multiplicity of causes that range along the entire continua of political, social, economic and environmental issues. Despite this ambiguity, its utility as a concept guiding social policy and innovations in management and leadership remains vital. In order for managers to be effective social and organizational change agents and prepared for managing in environments with value conflicts and diversity of all kinds, they must first understand what social justice means to them, how their definitions and meanings are derived, and how, why, when and where they develop their own values and meanings of social justice. In other words, we explore the management opportunities and challenges inherent in the Heller mission "Knowledge Advancing Social Justice."

Course Name: Social Justice, Management and Policy
Instructor: Sarita Bhalotra

This course provides MBA students with the opportunity to explore the management implications of "Knowledge Advancing Social Justice." We do this by examining historical and contemporary thinkers, justice issues and management activities, and by actively grappling with the daily management dilemmas faced by managers and change agents both inside and outside organizations.

Social Justice means different things to different people, in different places, and at different times. It is invoked to support and justify a multiplicity of causes that range along the entire continua of political, social, economic and environmental issues. Despite this ambiguity, its utility as a concept guiding social policy and innovations in management and leadership remains vital. In order for managers to be effective social and organizational change agents and prepared for managing in environments with value conflicts and diversity of all kinds, they must first understand what social justice means to them, how their definitions and meanings are derived, and how, why, when and where they develop their own values and meanings of social justice. In other words, we explore the management opportunities and challenges inherent in the Heller mission "Knowledge Advancing Social Justice."

Course Name: Social Marketing
Instructor: Ahn-Dai Lu

Social marketing is the use of marketing principles and techniques to influence a target audience to voluntarily accept, reject, modify, or abandon a behavior for the benefit of individuals, groups, or society as a whole (Kotler, 2002). An increasing number of nonprofit organizations and government agencies today rely on the practices of social marketing to create positive behavior change. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention as well as The Department of Heath in the UK have applied social marketing approaches to many of the health challenges in which individual behavior is a source of the problem. The Novartis Foundation has been carrying out social marketing campaigns for many years in the areas of leprosy, malaria and tuberculosis. Social marketing is also being used to influence behavior change for the benefit of protecting the environment or contributing to the community. In that context, this course is designed to help students understand how to use concepts from commercial marketing to impact social change on a wide variety of issues, and how to apply social marketing to any organization that seeks to achieve social objectives as part of its mission.

Course Name: Social Policy Frameworks
Instructor: Barry Friedman

This course provides frameworks for thinking about social policy and its implications for managers. Considers the organizations that initiate and administer policy, not only government, but also for-profit and not-for-profit organizations, and their interconnections with each other. Looks at the tools of social policy, especially those associated with the welfare state, such as social insurance, social assistance, and a wide variety of social services. Explores the underlying economic, social, and demographic trends that can drive changes in social policy. Considers issues of process in designing policy, democratic accountability, rights, opportunities for minority interests, and advocacy.

Course Name: Social Policy Frameworks
Instructor: Barry Friedman

This course provides frameworks for thinking about social policy and its implications for managers. Considers the organizations that initiate and administer policy, not only government, but also for-profit and not-for-profit organizations, and their interconnections with each other. Looks at the tools of social policy, especially those associated with the welfare state, such as social insurance, social assistance, and a wide variety of social services. Explores the underlying economic, social, and demographic trends that can drive changes in social policy. Considers issues of process in designing policy, democratic accountability, rights, opportunities for minority interests, and advocacy.

Course Name: State Health Policy
Instructor: Michael Doonan
Course Name: Strategic Management
Instructor: Thomas McLaughlin

This course explores the mission-based manager’s need to think strategically and to act effectively in a dynamic environment. You will develop skills for critically analyzing the components of markets, organizational structure, strategic plans, and strategic actions. You will develop practical planning tools for strategy including mission statements, leadership techniques, technological innovations, and organizational collaboration. The course will help you integrate and apply material learned in the various functional subjects you have studied.

The course material is highly varied and examines many types of organizations, the nature of the U.S. health and human services system, competition, technology, and the environmental and ethical considerations in decision-making. Excellent analyses, both qualitative and quantitative, will be expected. You will learn that an organization’s strategy and its environment are linked in a system in which managers must constantly formulate, implement, execute and evaluate strategy.

Because there is not just one "correct" solution to any strategy situation, and because authority in the governmental and nonprofit sectors is necessarily diffuse, managers must be able to persuade others. Therefore, a secondary goal of this course is for you to gain experience in formulating in-depth analyses and cogent, substantive arguments.

Course Name: Strategic Management
Instructor: Thomas Mclaughlin, Carole Carlson

This course explores the mission-based manager’s need to think strategically and act effectively in a dynamic environment. You will develop skills for critically analyzing the components of markets, organizational structure, strategic plans, and strategic actions. The course will help you integrate and apply material learned in the various functional subjects you have studied.

The course material is highly varied and examines many aspects of American and international health and human services systems, competition, technology, and the environmental and ethical considerations in decision making. Case material will draw on both for-profit and non-profit examples and examine how leaders and managers in both can use strategic management as a force for both fostering positive social change and creating financially successful enterprises. Excellent analyses, both qualitative and quantitative, will be expected. You will learn that an organization’s strategy and its environment are linked in a system in which managers must constantly formulate, implement, execute and evaluate strategy.

Course Name: Team Consulting Project
Instructor: Carole Carlson, Lawrence Bailis

This course requires students to form teams (typically three to five students) and then select and complete a consulting project for a mission-driven organization in the Greater Boston area. It is intended to achieve the following goals:

- Provide opportunity for students to apply ideas and approaches from course work in business settings and reflect on what they have learned

- Provide significant teamwork experience for students

- Develop and apply students’ consulting skill set

- Create an experience that expands students’ professional opportunities

- Provide service to the community and carry out the Heller mission of knowledge advancing social justice

The organizations that student teams work with are selected through several processes, including a request for proposals process that the instructors carry out (with input from students) and organizations that are invited to participate through student initiative with approval by the instructors.

Each student team works closely with a Heller faculty adviser to give overall direction and oversight to the project. In addition to the project itself, the course will involve a series of workshops designed to provide students with the team building and consulting skills necessary to meet client needs. There will be several sessions that enable teams to share their experiences with other teams and problem solve as a group. At the conclusion of the course, student teams will prepare reports for their clients and present their projects to clients and the Heller community.

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