LegalZoom.com Inc. has entered a partnership with the USC Marshall School of Business that will provide scholarship and curriculum support through the university’s Brittingham Social Enterprise Lab, or BSEL.
Under the partnership, LegalZoom will participate in BSEL lectures and establish a $30,000 scholarship for qualifying students in the Master of Science in Social Entrepreneurship degree program.
According to Adlai Wertman, professor and founding director of BSEL, the program offers the only one-year master’s degree in social entrepreneurship in the country. In 2020, the program consisted of 43 percent students of color and 34 percent first-generation students. The program’s price tag is around $60,000 for each student in the program, five of which will receive the $30,000 scholarship.
The partnership also connects BSEL and LegalZoom for internships, mentorships and employment opportunities. LegalZoom will provide up to $5,000 in free services to support the business formation and compliance needs of BSEL graduates who go on to start their own social entrepreneurship venture.
Wertman and Catherine Davie, LegalZoom’s head of social impact, both acknowledged the strength of the partnership would come not only from the scholarship money, but also from the additional entrepreneurial help scholarship students could receive.
“Many of our students, because we’re picking them out of communities where they didn’t have a lot of resources, don’t have high-powered jobs and savings. Many of them are taking care of their parents or have kids or are in their mid 20s,” Wertman said. “We need to do everything we can to support them in their efforts.” In discussing the terms of the partnership, Davie and Wertman recognized that in addition to curbing some of the program’s cost, students could further benefit from LegalZoom’s expertise and resources in entrepreneurship and social impact. Davie said that given LegalZoom’s commitments and values, helping Wertman and BSEL’s students through the partnership was a “no-brainer.” “We want to make sure that we’re supporting the students beyond them getting their degrees,” said Davie. “We want them to be LegalZoom customers as well, so we can support them, provide resources, expertise and champion their causes and tell their stories along the way.” “Catherine’s call is not something that shows up on my desk every day,” Wertman said. “It’s very rare that people say your students are the ones we want to support.” Davie said it was an exciting endeavor for LegalZoom to get into the academic space, considering the company’s core audience skews older than college students. “This is a great entryway into the next generation of socially minded entrepreneurs,” she said. “So, it’s really great for us to start being top of mind for young people who are looking to start a business.”
LegalZoom and USC, Partners in Education
