Katie Gruver

Job Opening – Vittana is looking for a Rails Developer

by Katie Gruver

Are you a Rails developer? Join our team! Job Description Vittana is looking for a scrappy Rails developer to join our team and help build www.vittana.org into the #1 marketplace for global education. Vittana is already a recognized leader in Seattle (Seattle 2.0: “Best Non-Profit”, Fast Company: “5 Social Capitalists

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Vittana on TechFlash

by Katie Gruver

We continue to be humbled and honored by the support of Seattle’s tech community. Two weeks ago, we won the Seattle 2.0 Award for Best Nonprofit Startup. Over the weekend, TechFlash ran this great article on Vittana. Here’s a favorite quote about how our CEO Kushal Chakrabarti sees the world and how

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Vittana wins “Best Nonprofit” at Seattle 2.0 and Celebrates 2nd Bday

by Katie Gruver

The excitement level is through the roof here at Vittana! And there are three very good reasons for our more-than-usual boisterousness. 1. Last night, Vittana won best non-profit start-up at the Seattle 2.0 Awards. Seattle is known worldwide for its innovative start-up community, and we’re excited and humbled to be

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Sunday Night Sound Session Gives Shout Out To Vittana

by Katie Gruver

Microfinance and hip hop don’t usually find themselves being used in the same sentence, but a week ago on @DJHyphen and J. Moore’s Sunday Night Sound Session, that’s exactly what happened. If you haven’t heard of Sunday Night Sound Session, this late night radio show is on Seattle’s Kube 93

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Why Donate?

by Katie Gruver

On Vittana.org, you can make an individual loan to a student and help them finish school. These loans change lives; there’s no doubt about it. There’s Haward (23) from Nicaragua whose loan helped him become a lawyer and who’s now giving back pro-bono services to his community. There’s Mercy Marilu

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How we can turn $1 into $53

by Katie Gruver
Cost of loan per dollar

Around the Vittana offices, we talk a lot about sustainability, return on investment and (everyone’s favorite word) “leverage”. Buzz words aside, what we’re really about is delivering student loans as efficiently as we can to as many young people as possible. Some organizations talk about providing a 2:1 leverage on

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Vittana’s been Netted by the Webby’s

by Katie Gruver

A few weeks ago we got a nice surprise in our inbox; we got the news that Netted was featuring Vittana in their daily email. Quite nice of them, don’t you think? Here’s the article in case you’d like to take a peek. Netted sends a daily internet-focused email that

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Breaking Microfinance News: Is Nobel Prize Winner Muhammad Yunus Fired?

by Katie Gruver

We woke up this morning to some disturbing news: that Nobel Prize Winner (and “grandfather” of the microfinance movement) Muhammad Yunus has been asked to step down as Managing Director of Grameen Bank (which he founded 1983). We’ve been following the story and wanted to send you a chronology of articles

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The Method to Our Madness

by Katie Gruver

  Yes, Vittana has a website. In fact it’s a pretty good one. The Vittana website facilitates peer-to-peer micro-lending where people (mostly in the United States) provide loans to students in the developing world so that they can attend college and technical school. But we’re not JUST a website; not

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Proud Mom Excited to See Son Graduate

by Katie Gruver

Meet Aulita Abindan, mother of Winston Abindan — one of our first Vittana students in the Philippines. Winston is learning to be a welder in a three month tech-training course, paid for with a Vittana Student Loan. Mother, Aulita Abindan                    

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