Rowan Claypool is a social entrepreneur who believes that young knowledge economy workers are the future of prosperous communities.
He is the founder of two organizations that have had a transformative effect on the city of Louisville and Commonwealth of Kentucky.
In 1999, Claypool founded Bulldogs in the Bluegrass. a program that provides summer internships in Louisville, Kentucky for Yale undergraduates. Since it began, Bulldogs in the Bluegrass has brought over 570 Yalies to experience Louisville through a total immersion experience. Of those, many have returned to Louisville for full-time employment after graduation.
Claypool also launched Teach Kentucky in 2001 to recruit the brightest and most ambitious young teachers to work in local public education. Since inception, Teach Kentucky has recruited 232 teachers, 141 of whom are still residing in Kentucky with 86% of participants still in the education profession.