As the COVID-19 pandemic continued to result in remote learning protocols, SPU held its fifteenth annual 社会创业计划比赛 (SVPC), 第二次是在虚拟环境中进行的. 学生团队为现实世界的问题开发解决方案, 在通过文件推销他们的想法时, 幻灯片, 视频, 和Zoom视频会议. Although students conducted research and developed business plans from the comfort of their own homes, many of the top projects looked well beyond the boundaries of campus to the needs of individuals around the world. 的 Showcase event, the finale of the annual SVPC, occurred virtually on Wednesday, April 14, 2021.
最重要的项目是 露天市场他被选为价值5000美元的赫伯特. Jones Grand Prize winner by the combined votes of 61 judges representing the business, 非营利性的, 学术, 以及专业团体. 学生社区 获得了第二名，赢得了3000美元的亚军. 在一天的过程中, more than 700 people logged on to the public Showcase site and voted for their favorite project, 给唐纳德B. 萨默斯人民选择奖1000美元给 岸边.
露天市场 (the Arabic word for market), wants to open the global market for all. 的 project seeks the economic empowerment of merchants and citizens in developing countries by increasing employment opportunities and revenue using an e-commerce platform that allows the sale of handcrafted, 全球范围内的手工制品. 从摩洛哥的meknsamis开始， 露天市场 would hire indigenous agents to work with local artisans and promote their crafts using digital technology previously inaccessible to them. 该团队希望创造就业机会, 增加收入, and offset some of the lost revenues these artisans would normally see from the tourist trade. 的 露天市场 团队成员包括大四学生奥利维亚·希尔, 全球发展研究, 中东和北非研究, and Honors liberal arts major; junior global development studies major Kyra Strom; senior business administration major Nathaniel Canny; and Daniel Eduardo Oliver, 华盛顿大学主修会计学的大四学生.
COVID-19大流行让许多人感到孤立. 2020年5月， 学生社区 was created with the goal of easily and scalably helping institutions create engaging communities that help members access resources they need while building meaningful relationships and establishing community culture. 的 first use of the mobile app was on college campuses, but 学生社区 now seeks to develop a version for corporate clients who are looking to onboard employees in a remote work environment. 学生社区 consisted of senior statistics major Snehita Sana and senior computer science major Sarayu Namineni, 他们都来自匹兹堡的卡内基梅隆大学, PA, 还有尼娜·扎纳雷利, a junior service design major from Politecnico di Milano in Italy.
另外还颁发了四项荣誉奖，奖金为2,000元:
11HR developed a device to detect traumatic brain injury (TBI) in the field. This low-cost solution would allow earlier diagnosis and treatment of TBI for military personnel, 警察, and other first responders exposed to blast overpressure situations (e.g. 爆炸). 11HR是由心理学专业大三学生凯尔·西蒙开发的, 大三工商管理专业的Hannah Nguyen, 以及社会学专业大三学生查兹·格罗夫斯.
Bevida would provide access to housing and support services for people experiencing homelessness in King County, while training them to be baristas in a specialty coffee cart business. Bevida was the work of senior global development studies majors Demi Reeves, 弥迦书陈, 亨特·贝恩, along with senior business administration major Mohammed Nematollahi, 全球发展专业大三学生Sebrin Edries, 以及工商管理专业大三学生Rycki Cruz.
Domestic violence affects two out of three women in Vietnam. 打破 will offer financial literacy programs and career coaching to Vietnamese women in an effort to empower them and end the cycle of harm. 打破 是由邦妮·陈组成的, 工商管理专业大三, 珍妮丝·山姆, 他是加州州立大学富勒顿分校商业经济学专业的大三学生.
克鲁加生态集团 proposes to collect recyclable plastics from the grounds of hotels in the tourist destination of Lombok, 印尼. Using a local workforce, they would shred and sell plastics to local buyers for repurposing, cleaning the beautiful beaches and providing jobs at the same time. 的 克鲁加生态集团 plan was written and presented by senior business administration majors Naomi Akiyama, 雅各布·欧文, 哈里森·范·埃克顿, along with junior global development studies major Keelan Long, 以及高级全球发展研究, 社会正义与文化研究, 荣誉文科专业的丽贝卡·休伯.
在势均力敌的竞争中， 岸边 赢得了人民选择奖. 的 team proposes a coffee shop that would help incarcerated women. 使用会员卡系统, the company will donate the value of every tenth cup of coffee to the Freedom Education Project, which attempts to combat systemic problems in the prison system through education and uplift. 岸边 was composed of junior business administration majors Kayla Nasralla and Audrey Lauer, 社会学专业大三学生艾米丽·卡苏, 以及工商管理专业大二学生贾斯汀·弗里曼.
SVPC提供了1美元的特别优惠,000 prize this year to the project that best addressed a need related to the COVID-19 pandemic. 独立于主要投票，由法官选出 学生社区 获得COVID-19影响奖.
This is the fifteenth year of SPU’s 社会创业计划比赛. Twenty teams presented at the Showcase event, comprising approximately 70 students. 除了11个SPU项目, 来自西北拿撒勒大学(Nampa)的七支队伍, ID), 来自华盛顿大学(西雅图)的一个团队, WA), 以及来自卡内基梅隆大学(匹兹堡)的一个团队, PA)竞争. 包括个别团队成员的计数, students from a record-breaking eight universities competed in this year’s virtual event. In addition to 60+ community judges, almost 800 people voted in the online People’s Choice balloting.
的 Showcase Round was the final leg of the 社会创业计划比赛. Earlier stages in the competition included a series of seminars on the basics of business plan writing, 对团队的书面商业计划进行评分, 以及与知识渊博的商人进行培训, 非盈利的高管, 和其他人. In all, more than 110 community volunteers gave time as readers, instructors, coaches, and judges.
我是Outline Ventures Group的Meredith Fishkin, 初任法官, commented: “的 teams had good ideas and I think a few really understood the impact they could make and the backing required to start up.”
回来的志愿者鲍勃·弗雷兹, 一位退休的外交官和教育家, 她说:“我以为我会讨厌它, 但我更喜欢这种新形式. 能亲自和你的学生交谈真是太棒了.“非常愉快的一天.”
Dr. 水晶詹金斯, 一个技术员, 银行高管, and entrepreneur also serving for the first time as a judge this year, 同意, 他说:“这个虚拟活动太棒了! It was so great spending three+ hours hearing the heart of each of these students. It gives me so much excitement and hope in the generations of leaders that are actively engaged and on the rise.”
SVPC的财政赞助者包括赫伯特. 琼斯的基础, 斯科特和凯瑟琳·康明斯家庭基金会, Bellmont橱柜, 和西北中心. 比赛是由 应用学习中心 (CAL)在 商业、政府和经济学院 (SBGE)在SPU.