A team of Earlham College students placed third out of 38 teams from colleges across Indiana at the Intercollegiate Entrepreneurs Summit in Indianapolis.
The students—Yousef Ali Ahmed Al-Dhabi, Katleho Mokhele and Gina Manhiça—competed in the Anchor & Accelerate Innovation Challenge, where teams developed startup concepts to address a real-world business case provided by Roll Tack Ventures. Over the course of a week, teams analyzed the problem, designed potential ventures and pitched their ideas to a panel of judges during the summit.
Earlham’s team advanced to the final round and ultimately placed third, earning $750 in prize money.
The students attended the summit with Gene Hambrick, senior director of the Center for Entrepreneurship, Innovation and Creativity at Earlham. Hosted by 16 Tech Innovation District, the event brought together college students from across the state for workshops, networking and hands-on experiences focused on innovation and entrepreneurship.
“The experience gave us hands-on insight into the entrepreneurial process—from analyzing a real business problem to developing a startup solution and pitching it to judges,” said Al-Dhabi. “It was an incredible opportunity to collaborate, apply innovative thinking, and represent Earlham among students from across the state.”
In addition to the competition, seven Earlham students attended workshops and networking sessions designed to help participants explore entrepreneurship, creative problem-solving and social innovation.
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About Earlham College
Earlham College and Earlham School of Religion foster a collaborative learning community that inspires and motivates students with transformative opportunities and experiences so they can become catalysts for good in a changing world. Located in Richmond, Indiana, Earlham is one of U.S. News & World Report’s Top 100 national liberal arts colleges and offers one of the top 20 classroom experiences in the nation, according to the Princeton Review.
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