Columbia Business School’s Tamer Center for Social Enterprise recently honored Justine Zinkin ’02, CEO of Neighborhood Trust Financial Partners, with the 2017 Social Enterprise Leadership Award at its annual reception.
Recognized for her ongoing dedication to driving social impact, Zinkin has inspired and overseen the dramatic growth of Neighborhood Trust, cultivating the organization as a national leader in financial empowerment and asset development. Zinkin joined Neighborhood Trust in 2002, formerly Credit Where Credit Is Due, to support its mission of financial empowerment in the Washington Heights community. Today, Neighborhood Trust’s signature Financial Empowerment Integration Model is applied in over 40 locations around New York City, and its technical assistance arm has provided services to low income communities in major cities nationally.
Zinkin was recently selected as a 2016 New Profit Accelerator Entrepreneur, a one-year program from the non-profit venture fund New Profit designed to accelerate the potential of extraordinary female social entrepreneurs and the impact of their organizations.
Damon Phillips, the Lambert Family Professor of Social Enterprise and co-director of the Tamer Center of Social Enterprise, introduced Zinkin at the reception, citing her commitment to social enterprise and her unanimous selection by the center’s committee as their 2017 leadership honoree. “We’re so honored to recognize Justine for her demonstrated leadership and dedication to social enterprise. Her outstanding contribution to Neighborhood Trust has elevated the organization from a grassroots credit union into a thriving social enterprise.” He also provided an update of the center’s active projects such as the climate change and business program, re-entry acceleration program for formerly incarcerated individuals, the Tamer Fund for Social Ventures, and the Summer Fellowship Program.
Addressing attendees, Zinkin spoke about the mission and work of Neighborhood Trust, praised Columbia Business School’s commitment to weaving social enterprise throughout its curriculum and culture, and acknowledged the influence the interdisciplinary approach has had on her personally and professionally. “I am truly honored to accept this award on behalf of all my colleagues at Neighborhood Trust, who are dedicated and committed to restoring trust in financial services and leveling the playing field to ensure that everyone has the tools to realize their goals,” said Zinkin.
The annual reception brings together Columbia Business School alumni, faculty members, students, and professionals in the social enterprise sector for an evening of networking and recognition. Past honorees include Phoebe Boyer ’93, president and CEO, Children’s Aid Society; Manmeet Kaur ’12, CEO, City Health Works; Ron Gonen ’04, CEO, Closed Loop Fund; David Del Ser ’08, chairman, Frogtek; and Ben Powell ’05, founder and CEO, Agora Partnerships.
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About the Tamer Center for Social Enterprise at Columbia Business School
The Tamer Center for Social Enterprise’s mission is to advance the understanding of how business can contribute to society and the environment, by emphasizing the vital role that social enterprise plays in transforming communities. The Center serves as an umbrella for a broad range of activities at the School including Public and Nonprofit Management, International Development and Emerging Markets, Social Entrepreneurship, Corporate Social Responsibility and Sustainability, and the Tamer Fund for Social Ventures. It is a resource for all students and alumni who seek to apply business skills to social enterprise endeavors at any point in their careers, enabling them to align personal values with professional goals and build careers that bring social benefits to a broader community. For more information visit: www.gsb.columbia.edu/socialenterprise.
About Columbia Business School
Columbia Business School is the only world-class, Ivy League business school that delivers a learning experience where academic excellence meets with real-time exposure to the pulse of global business. Led by Dean Glenn Hubbard, the School’s transformative curriculum bridges academic theory with unparalleled exposure to real-world business practice, equipping students with an entrepreneurial mindset that allows them to recognize, capture, and create opportunity in any business environment. The thought leadership of the School’s faculty and staff, combined with the accomplishments of its distinguished alumni and position in the center of global business, means that the School’s efforts have an immediate, measurable impact on the forces shaping business every day. To learn more about Columbia Business School’s position at the very center of business, please visit www.gsb.columbia.edu.