New Startup Competition To Award $4,500 To Student-Grown Businesses
Grambling State University (GSU) and BRF’s Entrepreneurial Accelerator Program (EAP), which specializes in stimulating entrepreneurship opportunities in Northwest Louisiana, have partnered to bring The Golden Pitch competition to the GSU campus. The competition is designed to support student innovation and will conclude at The Golden Pitch event, which will take place on November 15, 2018 at 6:00pm in the Grambling Hall Auditorium. This event is free and open to the public.
“One of EAP’s objective is to foster entrepreneurial education at the university level,” said Dave Smith, Executive Director of EAP. “We think the best way to grow an entrepreneurial-minded ecosystem is to expose students to an environment that celebrates their innovation. Through EAP’s Grand Prix college business plan competitions, we are guiding students and young entrepreneurs in growing their businesses, taking them from concept to reality.”
The Golden Pitch, one of three university business plan competitions that make up the Grand Prix program, is open to any student at Grambling State University. Fourteen students or teams with a business idea submitted applications. Students participated in a workshop with the EAP team members and other advisors, who provided the student competitors with expertise, mentorship and key connections needed to fuel their success.
The top five participants have been selected and will pitch in the final event to a panel of judges comprised of business professionals from the Northwest Louisiana region. The top five are: Andrew Beal, Ashirah Simpson, Jarrid Richards, Latina Jones, and Sherdica Moses. The winner will receive a cash prize, scholarships to Louisiana Startup Prize 2019 and the Patent Academy, plus professional services from EAP.
“This competition is helping young innovators hone their business skills and bring to life their own dreams,” said Donald White, Dean of the College of Business. “They’re learning that their innovative ideas can become much more than a thought — they have viable businesses they are growing.”
ABOUT EAP:
The Entrepreneurial Accelerator Program, an initiative of BRF, is a public/private partnership between BRF, the Caddo Parish Commission and the City of Shreveport to diversify the regional economy, create jobs and expand the area’s tax base by providing services to innovative startups that have high growth potential. Since EAP began in July 2014, the program has screened more than 690 startups and provided services to more than 220 companies.