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WSJ: Social Innovation as an Art

Bill Strickland turned his love of ceramics into a creative outlet for disadvantaged city kids.

Mr. Strickland started a Pittsburgh program in 1968 called the Manchester Craftsmen's Guild to offer arts classes to kids; now he's CEO of the 138-employee nonprofit Manchester Bidwell Corp., which also provides vocational training to adults. He won a MacArthur Fellowship "genius" award in 1996 for economic development. Edited interview excerpts follow.