CONTACTS:
Jennifer Green/NFTE/(617) 388-2008
Andrea Kotuk/Andrea & Associates/(212) 353-9585
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RHODE ISLAND STUDENT WINS NEW ENGLAND REGIONAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP CHALLENGE
HOSTED BY NETWORK FOR TEACHING ENTREPRENEURSHIP (NFTE)
Student Entrepreneurs Competed to Advance to National Finals
Keegan Bonds-Harmon, a student at The MET School in Providence, RI won first place at the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) New England Regional Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge. He will represent the Southern New England region at the NFTE 2017 National Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge in October in New York City where he will present and defend his business plan to compete for prizes totaling $20,000. Keegan won $1,000 for his plan for Keegan’s Creatures, handmade designs on shirts with a focus on artistry and creativity that maximizes self-expression, and combat fast fashion culture.
“NFTE activates the entrepreneurial mindset and builds startup skills in youth both to ensure their long-term success and a more vibrant economy and society,” says Shawn Osborne, NFTE President and CEO. “Youth today are not prepared for the jobs of today or to create and fill the jobs of tomorrow. Many of the high-growth jobs of today barely existed a decade ago and the jobs of the future likely do not exist today. The entrepreneurial mindset is therefore key to success for any young person who wants to be ready for a fast-changing future.”
Fifty judges participated in the New England regional competition, including: Zenobia Moochhala, Co-Founder, SVP & GM of US & International Consumer Marketplace, Care.com; Patrick Good, Partner, EY; Sheryl Marshall, Founder, Capital W, the Boston Women's Venture Summit; Barbara Russell, Managing Director, Detwiler Fenton; Karen Yim, Principal Support Engineer, Netscout Systems; Sam Polk, Vice President, Marketing Technologies, Santander Bank, N.A.; and Amy Whitney, Director - Innovation & Entrepreneurship Program at Clark University.
NFTE Regional Youth Entrepreneurship Challenges will take place in cities across the country supported by Microsoft and the Citi Foundation, as part of its Pathways to Progress global expansion to prepare urban youth for today’s competitive job market. Additional support for the New England Regional Challenge was provided by Netscout, Santander, EY and Babson. The New England competition was held on May 24 at Babson College’s Wellesley Main Campus.
Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) is an international nonprofit that activates the entrepreneurial mindset in young people and builds their knowledge about business startup. Students acquire the entrepreneurial mindset (e.g., innovation, self-reliance, comfort with risk), alongside business, STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Math), and presentation skills—equipping them to drive their best futures in the 21st Century. NFTE focuses its work on under-resourced communities, with programs in 22 locations in 9 countries. For more information, please visit nfte.com, like NFTE on Facebook at Facebook.com/NFTE, and follow NFTE on Twitter at @NFTE.