| For the fourth consecutive year, students from all 17 institutions of the University of North Carolina system convened at North Carolina A&T State University for the Social Entrepreneurship Conference.
The conference featured Colleen Briggs, vice president of financial capability and consumer initiatives within global philanthropy at JPMorgan Chase, as the keynote speaker.
“The competition is an opportunity for students to apply the knowledge and skills from their entrepreneurship classes to solving real social and environmental problems in the community,” said Dr. Thaddeus McEwen, conference coordinator, professor in the department of management in the School of Business and Economics and director of the Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation.
For this year’s event, teams presented 46 business plans, a conference record. There were three categories – the open category for undergraduate teams and the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics, the open category for the graduate student teams and the new category of financial literacy which was open to undergraduate, graduate and mixed-level teams.
In the undergraduate and graduate categories, the teams were challenged to submit innovative ideas that solve or address compelling community social challenges of any sort. Prizes for the undergraduate category were $3,000 for the winning team, $2,000 for the first runner-up and $1,000 for the second runner-up. In the graduate category, the winning team received $5,000, the first runner-up $3,000 and the second runner-up received $1,000.
The financial literacy category challenged teams to submit innovative ideas to improve financial literacy in their own communities. The financial literacy category gave a single prize of $5,000.
This year’s winners include the following:
Undergraduate:
Winner: North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics
PACT – an app to help doctors communicate directly with caregivers of adolescent cancer patients
First runner-up: The University of North Carolina at Charlotte
HoneySphere – a beehive kit for beekeepers that promises improved outcomes for bees
Second runner-up: The University of North Carolina at Pembroke
RememberMe – a memory book for Alzheimer’s patients that provides memories using all five senses
Graduate:
Winner: The University of North Carolina at Charlotte
MedServe – a health care version of Teach for America, providing students interested in careers in health care an opportunity to get hands-on experience in struggling rural health clinics
First runner-up: The University of North Carolina at Wilmington
Special Pedals – job training for adults with disabilities, focusing on bicycle repair on college campuses
Second runner-up: The University of North Carolina at Charlotte
INTech Foundation – training and inspiration for teenage girls interested in computers and technology
Financial Literary special category:
Winner: North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics
SonoRelief – an app providing personalized music for PTSD sufferers as they deal with various challenges.
This year’s conference was sponsored by JPMorgan Chase & Co., Queen City Forward, the Small Business and Technology Development Center, Lincoln Financial Foundation and Weaver Foundation. |
