Still, many dismiss the idea of teaching philanthropy to MBA students as simply unbusinesslike. Nonprofit courses have been around a long time, but some still question them like they did women's studies. Even some students ask how such ideas of social responsibility fit into their education. Programs at both Harvard and Stanford offer an array of philanthropy and nonprofit classes. But administrators at those schools stress that generous alumni endowments have made such offerings possible.
Many schools have to make do with the money they have.
But even at Harvard, such classes don't enjoy universal support. Many newly rich executives didn't come from families with money to give away. So they don't have the background training. Giving has become more complicated, she says. While people once donated to their local church or the United Way and relied on them to make the hard choices, many now want more involvement.