OUZ students sweep OUE Shark Tank Challenge in promoting economic growth
From left to right: Darci Wagner, Samuel Lilly, Corey Brown, and Michelle Illing | Photo provided by Ohio University Zanesville
June 20, 2019
Three Ohio University Zanesville students took home a cash prize in late May after winning the Ohio University Eastern Shark Tank Challenge.
Five teams from four area colleges competed in the challenge which was geared toward promoting economic growth in the Ohio Valley region by utilizing technological innovation. The competition also aimed to foster creative mindsets and enhance participating students’ entrepreneurial skills.
Each of the five teams — from Belmont College, Eastern Gateway, Ohio University Eastern and Ohio University Zanesville — was tasked with presenting a service or product that would assist communities with low economic growth. Three students from each college, with two teams from OUE, composed each competing team.
The competition consisted of two rounds. In the preliminary round, a panel of judges evaluated each team’s idea during a 15 minute presentation in which the team promoted their service or product followed by a 10 minute session where the judges asked questions.
Three of the highest scoring teams advanced to the final round in which another 15 minute time period allowed the team to present their idea again, followed by a longer 15 minute session where judges asked additional questions.
The winning team was awarded $1,500 to split among the team members.
The Shark Tank Challenge was sponsored by an Ohio TechGrowth grant. The competition was organized and hosted by Ohio University Eastern with special recognition for Michael Schor.
Roger Thomas • Jun 23, 2019 at 1:48 pm
Dear Jessica Johnson. As a writer you used many words and then left out the key ideas of what the students had for which they won. Why did you do that? Is this New Journalism? As a former partner of ACENET in Athens, Ohio by founder June Holley, who thought that winning federal grants for ideas to “revitalize Southeastern Ohio” would work. Holley was wrong. I saw first hand how her failure to create a single viable business employment situation, like the ones of which you write, was success. Jessica, the students ideas will go nowhere, but my those pipe dreams do look good on paper! Regards, RTT