JFCS Takes Entrepreneurial Approach

"Social enterprises are designed to be more insulated from the ups and downs of philanthropy and economic cycles," Schorr said. "But of course, these times are so unusual, it's hard to say if anything can withstand them entirely."

Schorr estimated only about 10 percent of the nonprofit sector has assumed a social enterprise model since the late '80s, but she said that not all nonprofits make good candidates for revenue-generating organizations. Still, the social enterprise movement is growing, especially in the Bay Area, Schorr said, and the concept is widespread among social service programs in the United Kingdom.