Mines Students Win Scholarships through Speaker Series
South Dakota Mines concluded its 17th annual Engineers Make Great Entrepreneurs (EMGE) Speaker Series this fall. A total of 41 students took home cash prizes. The program aims to develop a sense of entrepreneurship among Mines students with the hope that they may aspire to start their own company someday.
The program featured four evening sessions with three speakers per session as well as the final presentation and pitch competition. Students who attended and fully participated in the program were eligible to receive a $250 cash prize and had the chance to win larger cash prizes for the best two-minute pitch on how they planned to be entrepreneurial in their future careers.
The winners were:
First place: Brianna Hoff ($1,000)
Second Place: Ding Lou ($750)
Third Place: Collin Fuller, Enzo Vaz Tessaro, Ava Beck, Jonathan Mathews ($500)
The program was hosted each week at a new venue and
designed to engage students with exciting content featuring new speakers, a
free meal and the opportunity to learn from real-world entrepreneurs and
business leaders. This year's venue hosts included RPM & Associates, H-S
Precision and RESPEC. In total, 47 students participated in the program with
others from the Mines Student Innovation Club who regularly attended sessions.
The EMGE speaker series is designed to inspire students to be entrepreneurial in their future careers and provide them with opportunity to develop professionally, network, and connect with like-minded students. It is the first of many opportunities for students to engage and participate in the Mine's student innovation cycle offered through the Office of Economic Development and introduces students to the CEO Student Business Plan competition.