More than 130 students from nine area colleges and universities will compete for $40,000 in prize money at the 2016 MWest Challenge, hosted by the Richard M. and Helen DeVos Center for Entrepreneurship in the Seidman College of Business.
The entrepreneurial competition will be held April 1, from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Eberhard Center on the Pew Grand Rapids Campus; the awards ceremony will begin around 1 p.m.
The event will feature 52 startup teams; each will have eight minutes to present their idea to the judges. The competition includes awards for a range of categories from the creative to the highly technical. Students competing are from Grand Valley, Aquinas College, Calvin College, Kendall College of Art and Design, Cornerstone University, Davenport University, Grand Rapids Community College, Kuyper College and Hope College.
The competition will be judged by more than 45 experienced entrepreneurs, executives and business leaders from the community.
This year's competition is presented by Northwestern Mutual, along with Spectrum Innovations, GR Current, Spartan Innovations and Amway. Since the initial kickoff in November 2014, MWest has provided networking opportunities, mentors, workshops and seminars for participating students.
Past Winners
Participating in the MWest Competition has proved to be an important step for student-run businesses and has resulted in teams going on to incorporate new business in Michigan, achieve sales and raise significant additional funding to continue their ventures.
• Alaina Clarke from "Break it Down: Doing Business" won the 2015 Lifestyle Award for her curriculum designed to address the lack of business literacy in college-level arts education. Clarke has successfully implemented her program through Avenue for the Arts and is amassing her findings into a book for universities to integrate into art and design programs.
• Eric VanMiddendorp placed first in the category of Masterclass for his work on Airway Innovations, a single-use endotracheal tube designed to increase patient comfort while preventing unplanned breathing tube removal. He is currently pursuing FDA approval in order to finalize development and move forward with licensing. This year, six teams will be representing Spectrum Health Innovations and will present ideas for a range of innovative solutions, including a female urinary catheter device, an IV spike assistant and a wheelchair loading device.
For more information, visit www.mwestchallenge.com or contact Grand Valley’s Center for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at (616) 331-7582.
