Belmont University
  • Home
  • Bernard Turner

Bernard Turner

Bernard Turner

Associate Professor of Social Entrepreneurship, Director of the Center for Social Entrepreneurship

Jack C. Massey College of Business

Ed.D. Leadership and Professional Practice Trevecca Nazarene University M.A. Philanthropy and Development Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota M.B.A. Organizational Administration University of Toledo B.S. Business Administration Findlay College

Location: Jack C. Massey Center 451

615-460-6591
bernard.turner@belmont.edu

Biography

Dr. Bernard Turner, GPC is an Associate Professor of Social Entrepreneurship and Director of Center for Social Entrepreneurship. Belmont’s undergraduate program in social entrepreneurship was the first in the nation when it launched in the fall of 2008. He has been affiliated with the Center for Nonprofit Management in Nashville for over 30 years. He has extensive experience in the nonprofit sector. His career includes, fundraising for colleges/universities and nonprofits; program development; and economic development positions working with minority and women-owned businesses. He has experience in program development, training, strategic planning, organizational assessments and other training and technical assistance to nonprofits. He served as a board member, treasurer, vice president, and president for the Grant Professionals Association. He holds the GPC (Grant Professional Certified) designation. He also serves or has served on the board of Project Return, Nashville Social Enterprise Alliance, Interfaith Dental Clinic, and Soles4 Souls, a global nonprofit dedicated to wearing out poverty. Dr. Turner was also the Senior Program Officer for the National Community AIDS Partnership (now AIDS United) based in Washington, DC, an initiative developed by The Ford Foundation. He provides consultation and technical assistance to nonprofits and organizations. His academic qualifications include an Ed.D. in Leadership and Professional Practice, an MA in Philanthropy and Development, an MBA in Organizational Administration, and a BS in Business Administration from four different universities.

Education:

  • Ed.D. Leadership and Professional Practice, Trevecca Nazarene University
  • M.A. Philanthropy and Development, Saint Mary’s University of Minnesota
  • M.B.A. Organizational Administration, University of Toledo
  • B.S. Business Administration, Findlay College

Certifications: 

  • Certificate of Excellence in Nonprofit Leadership and Management, Society for Nonprofits and Michigan State University Extension
  • Certificate in Social Entrepreneurship, United States Association for Small Business and Entrepreneurship
  • Grant Professional Certified Designation (GPC), Grants Professionals Certification Institute
  • Certificate of Completion, The Experiential Classroom IX – Reaching and Teaching Tomorrow’s Entrepreneurs, Syracuse University
  • Certificate of Achievement, Executive Management Institute, Christian Brothers University - Memphis, Tennessee

  • Associate Professor, Social Entrepreneurship; Program Director, Social Entrepreneurship, Belmont University
  • Associate Vice President, Corporate and Foundation Relations, Meharry Medical College
  • Chief Consulting Officer, Bernard Turner Consulting, Vice President, Fund Development, The New Hope Foundation, Inc./Priority Hospice Care, Inc.
  • Development Director, Comprehensive Care Center/Vanderbilt University Medical Center
  • Vice President & Chief Operating Officer, Mid-South Minority Business Council
  • Director of Grant Development, Vanderbilt University School of Nursing,
  • Senior Program Officer, National Community AIDS Partnership (now the AIDS United),
  • Fund Distribution Manager & Grant Writing Specialist; Project Manager, AIDS Initiative, United Way of Middle Tennessee
  • Business Management Consultant, Nashville Minority Business Development Center
  • Director of Marketing & Public Relations; Recruiter, JTPA Program, General Services & Products, Inc.,
  • Methods Analyst; Personnel Specialist; Supervisor, Employment; and EEO Coordinator, Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Northern Ohio
  • Project Coordinator, Industrial Sales Department, Dunbar Mechanical, Inc.

  • Teaching: A New Career, A New Journey. The Art of Teaching, Vol. 15, No. 2. Belmont University.
  • Social Entrepreneurship and Higher Education, Tennessee Business, Vol. 20, No.1. (2011) Business & Economic Research Center, Jones College of Business, Middle Tennessee State University.
  • Grant Professionals as Social Entrepreneurs. Lead article for the Journal of the American Association of Grant Professionals, Fall 2008, Vol. 6, No. 1.
  • HBCUs: An Educational System at the Crossroads. ERIC (Educational Resources Information Center) Database. Full Paper. 2001.
  • HBCUs: An Educational System at the Crossroads. Black Issues in Higher Education, Last Word Article, August 23, 2001.

  • Social Entrepreneurship and Grant Writing: Ingredients for Success.  Grant Professionals Association Grant Summit, Kansas City, Missouri (2023)
  • Introduction to Social Entrepreneurship and Implications for Sustainability.  Webinar: National Council on Aging, Alexandria, Virginia. (2022)

  • GPC Stories: How the Grant Professionals Certified Credential Can Help Your Career. Grant Professionals Association, Louisville, Kentucky. (2022)

  • 6th Annual Symposium on Service-Learning 2015. Co-Presenter with Tim Stewart, Belmont’s Directory of Service-Learning. Presentation Title: Connecting Campus to Community: Integrating a Web-based Software Platform to Support Service-Learning and Civic Engagement.
  • Nonprofit Leadership Alliance 2015 Conference. Presentation Title: Social Enterprise: Innovation, Sustainability, and The Future of the Nonprofit Sector.
  • Christian Community Development Association 2014 Conference. Presentation Title: Grant Writing Tips: Insights from a Grant Reviewer.
  • 16th Annual Grant Professionals Association Conference 2014. Presentation Title: Lessons Learned: Results for a College Grant Writing Course.
  • 2013 Gulf South Summit Conference. Presentation Title: Utilizing Service-Learning as an Effective Pedagogy for Teaching Social Entrepreneurship.
  • Christian Community Development Association 2012 Conference. Presentation Title: Social Enterprise: Innovation, Impact & Sustainability.
  • American Baptist College Community Breakfast 2011. Presentation Title: Sustaining A Nonprofit Like the Church in an Economic Recession: Faith & Finance.
  • 12th Annual American Association of Grant Professionals Conference 2010. Presentation Title: Developing and Implementing a College Grant Writing Course: A Learning/Training Model for Replication.
  • 2010 Gulf-South Summit on Service-Learning and Civic Engagement in Critical Times Presentation Title: Social Entrepreneurship: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Educating Tomorrow’s Change Agents in the Social Sector.
  • Institute of International Education, 2010 Nashville Fulbright Enrichment Seminar Panel Discussion: Global Challenges, Local Solutions: Fostering Change through Social Entrepreneurship
  • Institute of International Education, 2009 Nashville Fulbright Enrichment Seminar Panel Discussion: Social Entrepreneurship: From Vision to Action.
  • USASBE 2009 Annual Conference. Presentation Title: Development of an Undergraduate Curriculum in Social Entrepreneurship: An Interdisciplinary Model for Educating Future Social Entrepreneurs.

     

 

  • Teagle Teaching Fellow.
  • Best Teaching Award, Experiential Classroom, USASBE & Syracuse University.
  • One of twenty persons selected nationwide to attend the first Minority Advancement Institute: Conference for Diverse Managers presented by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education.
  • First African American male to graduate from Trevecca Nazarene University with a doctorate degree.
  • Selected as 1 of 36 persons nationwide for first federal grant review process for the Ryan White CARE Act, Special Projects of National Significance Funds, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
  • Received the President’s Award from the Grant Professionals Certification Institute (2023)
  • Received the Grant Professionals Distinguished Fellow Award from the Grant Professionals Association, Grant Professionals Certification Institute, and the Grant Professionals Foundation (2024).

Jack C. Massey College of Business

Shaping Tomorrow's Leaders

Discover how the Jack C. Massey College of Business fosters innovation and empowers the next generation of business leaders.

Learn More