Entrepreneur, Founder of Global Social Advocacy Organization to Speak at Baylor University

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WACO, Texas (Nov. 14, 2014) – South African native Marlon Parker, an entrepreneur and social advocate with a passion for community development that influenced the global movement Reconstructed Living Lab (RLabs), will speak at Baylor University Thursday and Friday, Nov. 20-21.

Parker’s visit is sponsored by Baylor University’s LAUNCH Innovative Business Accelerator and the Baugh Center for Entrepreneurship and Free Enterprise in Baylor’s Hankamer School of Business.

RLabs, headquartered in Cape Town, South Africa, provides innovative solutions to impact, empower and reconstruct local and global communities by creating an environment where creativity, innovation, skills development and entrepreneurship is encouraged.

“I had the opportunity to witness the impact of Marlon’s work in Cape Town first-hand and was stunned by the effectiveness and comprehensiveness of the transformations he is sparking, both in individuals and in their communities,” said Gregory Leman, Ph.D., director of LAUNCH. “We hope we can gain insights that will spur us on in creating our own transformations in Waco.”

Listed as of the 100 World Class South Africans in 2013, Parker is an alumnus of President Obama’s Young African Leaders Initiative and an honorary faculty member of the International School of Digital Transformation.

During 2014, he was selected as a World Economic Forum Young Global Leader. He was the co-founder of JamiiX that was the backbone of one of the largest mobile chat counseling networks in the world with more than 3 million people reached since its inception. Parker is also a trustee of the Mxit Reach Trust, and his most recent initiative is co-founding the Kukua Fund, an early stage investment company seeking to invest in high-growth social entrepreneurs in Africa.

Parker will speak at 9:30 and 11 a.m. Nov. 20 in Cashion Academic Center, room 103. Later that day, he will speak to an assembly of high school students at University High School in Waco. On Friday, Nov. 21, he will meet at the Baylor Research and Innovation Collaborative (BRIC) with community leaders to discuss poverty issues.

Cashion Academic Center is located at 1401 S. Fourth St. in Waco.

More information on RLabs and Parker can be found at www.rlabs.org.

ABOUT BAYLOR UNIVERSITY

Baylor University is a private Christian University and a nationally ranked research institution, characterized as having “high research activity” by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. The University provides a vibrant campus community for approximately 16,000 students by blending interdisciplinary research with an international reputation for educational excellence and a faculty commitment to teaching and scholarship. Chartered in 1845 by the Republic of Texas through the efforts of Baptist pioneers, Baylor is the oldest continually operating University in Texas. Located in Waco, Baylor welcomes students from all 50 states and more than 80 countries to study a broad range of degrees among its 12 nationally recognized academic divisions. Baylor sponsors 19 varsity athletic teams and is a founding member of the Big 12 Conference.

ABOUT HANKAMER SCHOOL OF BUSINESS

Baylor University’s Hankamer School of Business provides a rigorous academic experience, consisting of classroom and hands-on learning, guided by Christian commitment and a global perspective. Recognized nationally for several programs, including Entrepreneurship and Accounting, the school offers 24 undergraduate and 13 graduate areas of study. Visit www.baylor.edu/business and follow on Twitter at twitter.com/Baylor_Business.