The SICC Dictionary

barriers to entry /berēərs to͞o entrē/ noun 1. (Economics) the existence of high startup costs, legal restrictions, or other obstacles that prevent new competitors from easily entering an industry or area of business, giving existing businesses power, or even monopoly power 2. the reality to which your idea must continually adapt in order to become a great idea and make a real impact 3. perceived or real hindrances that unnecessarily limit the prospects of a young person to access the education they need 4. what your SICC team will help you surmount

“Life isn’t fair, and some barriers to entry make it difficult to start up a venture or a project, but difficulty demands creativity and dedication, so if you want to succeed and have fun succeeding, find a great team.” — Esperanza Mondragon

“Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens [can overcome the barriers to entry and] can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has.” — Margaret Mead

“Education is about access, and access is about justice, and justice is about democracy, and democracy is about helping people overcome barriers to entry into the institutions that safeguard our freedom of thought, expression, economy, and creativity.”— Jennifer Campesina-Demos

belly rub therapy™ ® © /belē/rəb/ˈTHerəpē/ noun 1. a formerly patented form of facilitated therapeutic interaction with a Belly Rub Certified™ canine, which, having passed a rigorous, proprietary on-site training regimen and having been approved with a proprietary licensure exam, provides the human with value-added, unique, and billable therapeutic benefit 2. a currently free means of relieving stress

“If what I’m selling is smelling, it’s better to clean up and share. How bout a belly rub?” — Chomsky (internal monologue as he nuzzles a stranger’s hand to summon a smile and impetuously propose an irresistible belly rub)

cairn /kern/ noun 1. a stack or mound of stones erected as a memorial, landmark, or as a trail marker in high, treeless terrain 2. a prehistoric burial mound made of stones 3. a small Scottish terrier with short legs, a longish body, and a shaggy coat 4. a truly SICC symbol. (Or is it a SICC path?)

“My three friends and I followed a trail marked with white blazes painted on tree trunks until we left treeline, then we found our path through the rockfield from cairn to cairn on our final push to the summit.” — Karen Ann Catapult

“My pet rock wishes he were a cairn, my cairn wishes he were a golden retriever, and my golden retriever wishes he were a white-tailed deer.” — Dr. Justin Subjunctive, M.D.

creativity /krēāˈtivədē/ noun 1. what you have 2. what you manifest when you are your true self and your best self 3. your most marketable asset 4. your priceless identity, so don’t sell out 5. the purpose of education, career, and life

“There is no algorithm for creativity.” — Andy Hargreaves

“To understand is to invent.” — Jean Piaget

“There is no tomorrow!” — Apollo Creed

mission /miSHən/ noun 1. an overall vision for your study, your work, and your life 2. how you plan to be creative

“When you’re swimming in a red ocean that’s thrashingly full of warm and fuzzy corporate mission statements, your personal mission statement is your shark cage bearing your golden ticket to freedom, mixed metaphorically speaking.” — J.R. “Bob” Dobbs

path /paTH/ noun 1. a trail or track laid down for walking or created through incessant treading 2.  course of action or conduct

“I was trudging down, then up, then back down this so-called road less travelled by, and it was making not a damn bit of difference, so I made my own road.” — Bob Frostman

problem /ˈpräbləm/ noun 1. an opportunity

“Everywhere I look, I see problems, and everywhere I see problems, I see myself solving them. Or at least one of them. But I hope when I solve that problem, I won’t one day have to find a photoshopped picture of me standing on a summit, arms raised in triumph and empowerment and liberation above some syrupy inspirational quote and sold for five bucks at a poster sale run by an underpaid sales rep for Anomie Images, LLC.” — Carmelitha Jackson

“No more inspirational quotes or all y’all are gonna have a problem!”— Randall Schmirkman

social entrepreneur /sōSHəl äntrəprəˈnər/ noun 1. a person who creates sustainable social and economic value by solving problems and meeting a community’s needs 2. you 3.anyone in any field who finds ways to sustainably solve problems and connect with their community

“However many questions you have, whatever your interest, whatever your situation, whatever your planned career - self-employed or working in a company or organization - you can find a way to do well by doing good by being a social entrepreneur.” — Prof. David St. Hubbins

sustainability /səˌstānəˈbilədē/ noun 1. (of an individual) a practical approach to supporting oneself and one’s family that allows needs to be met with an efficient amount of resources (financial, natural, or social) aiming to create or reuse more resources over a lifespan than are used 2. (of a business or organization) a practical means of operation that allows the organization to grow by meeting the needs as well as the desires of a community, and doing so in such as way as the financial, environmental, and social impact remains positive 3. acting such that resources or benefits are created more than consumed

“Sarcasm is fun for a while, but ultimately isn’t sustainable, so find a good balance between earnestness and therapeutic snark, find moderation in all things, and find your own comfortable state of equanimity, and in that, you are on the Path to find success and happiness.” — Ronald McSocrates

“Do not hurry; do not rest.” — Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (who, according to the recently discovered diary of Johann Gambolputty, had trouble pronouncing his own name)

“Our life is frittered away by detail. Simplify. Simplify.” — Henry David Thoreau

“Only connect.” — E.M. Forster