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Worldwide Entrepreneur, Jessica Jackley, to Keynote BB&T Lecture Series

Nationally recognized speaker and worldwide entrepreneur, Jessica Jackley, will be the guest speaker for the upcoming BB&T Lectures in Free Enterprise hosted by the University of West Georgia Richards College of Business. The presentation, part of UWG’s commitment to provide valuable speakers and events for both its students and the West Georgia community, includes two events keynoted by Jackley. The first is a lecture on Thursday, Sept. 12 at 8 p.m., at the Townsend Center, Main Stage, followed by a breakfast on Friday, Sept. 13 at 7:30 a.m. at the Burson Center. Both events are free and open to the public.

Nationally Recognized Educator and Speaker to Share Her Story of Lessons Learned as an EntrepreneurAt each event, Jackley will share inspiring stories as well as lessons learned as an entrepreneur at both events. She says she hopes the attendees will leave the events feeling inspired and motivated, knowing that they can have a very clear path to where they want to be and believe in themselves.

Early in her career, the Stanford Graduate School of Business graduate co-founded and served as the chief marketing officer of Kiva, the world’s first peer-to-peer microlending website. Kiva lets internet users lend as little as $25 to individual entrepreneurs, providing affordable capital to help them start or expand a small business. Kiva has been one of the fastest-growing social benefit websites in history and since its founding in October 2005, has facilitated nearly $400 million in loans among individuals across 216 countries.

Jackley later became the co-founder and CEO of ProFounder, a pioneering crowdfunding platform providing tools for small business entrepreneurs in the U.S. to access start-up capital and harness community involvement. In February 2012, ProFounder joined forces with GOOD to create new tools and experiences for their community creators and Jackley became GOOD’s first Entrepreneur-in-Residence.

Today, having worked in capacities that span from co-founder and CEO to speaker and educator, Jackley continues to expand her skills while working as a social entrepreneur focused on empowering others through entrepreneurship and access to capital. She serves as an advisor with the Collaborative Fund, focused on investing in creative entrepreneurs who want to change the world through emerging technologies. She is also a Visiting Practitioner at Stanford University’s Center for Philanthropy and Civil Society.

In 2012, she received the Symons Innovator Award and starred in the Best Buy television commercial on how her business helped her start Kiva. Jackley’s works have also gained recognition from The New York Times Magazine, Oprah Winfrey and Bill Clinton.

Admission is free for both events, reservations are required. RSVP your attendance at www.westga.edu/business. Tickets to the lecture will be available Sept. 3 at the Townsend Center.

For more information on the BB&T Lectures in Free Enterprise Series, contact the University of West Georgia’s Richards College of Business at (678) 839-6467.

To learn more about Jackley, please visit jessicajackley.com.


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