Though best known as an actor, Richard Dreyfuss has lately turned some of his attention to helping young adults learn more about the founding ideals of the United States. His nonprofit, The Dreyfuss Initiative, provides interactive educational materials for teachers, parents and students. The Oscar winner recently sat down with Knowledge@Wharton High School to talk about what young people need to know about government, and the lessons that have been important to his development as a citizen.

Actor Richard Dreyfuss Talks Greek Mythology, ‘Maligned Heroes’ and How to Become A More Engaged Citizen

PoverUp, which launched in April 2011, was named one of Inc. Magazine’s “11 Coolest College Startups,” and founder Charlie Javice, who is 19, was one of Fast Company’s “100 Most Creative People in Business 2011.” Javice, a student at The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, spoke with Knowledge@Wharton High School editor Diana Drake about building an online network that lets socially minded students learn, connect and invest in microfinance.

Generation Microfinance: Charlie Javice Believes in the Power of Students to Alleviate Poverty

Take $26, and add one East Coast undergrad on his way to war as a Marine in Iraq and one enterprising single mother living in one of the world's biggest slums in Africa, and what do you get? The makings of a groundbreaking non-profit called Carolina for Kibera (CFK). Here's what Rye Barcott -- CFK's co-founder and author of his new memoir, It Happened on the Way to War: A Marine's Path to Peace -- has to say about the small things social entrepreneurs can do to make a big impact and why it's important to start sooner rather than later.

Rye Barcott of Carolina for Kibera: A Marine’s Take on the Power of Social Entrepreneurship

Sourav Bose, a recent graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, majored in biology and crisis management. As a junior in high school, Bose founded a non-profit agency that sponsors an HIV education center in India and complemented his work abroad by volunteering as an emergency medical technician and firefighter with his local fire department. He has continued his interest in disaster management, as well as researching emergent medical care in Guatemala. In an interview with classmate Mindy Zhang, Bose talked to Knowledge@Wharton High School about the intersection of business and medicine, and leadership lessons from his experiences in crisis response.

Mission Critical: Sourav Bose Tackles Public Health Research and Disaster Management

Kristen Hall, a senior at the University of Pennsylvania, is in the dual degree Huntsman program, which includes courses in both finance and international studies. Interested primarily in international development, she has been thinking of ways to use her academic knowledge in places like Nigeria, Botswana and Tanzania. She was interviewed recently for Knowledge@Wharton High School by classmate Alan Lee.

From Business Clubs and Lab Research to Choir and Africa: ‘Explore All Your Different Passions’