By Renee Larr
Five Fishers High School seniors will compete against students from Culver Academy and Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy in The Next Launch competition at 1 p.m. May 17. The event is sponsored by the Ron Rubin School for the Entrepreneur at Culver Academies.
Teams comprised of one, two or three students will compete for Best Business Idea that includes a description of the product or service and its market to win $10,000. First runner up receives $5,000 and second runner up receives $2,500. John Weschler, creator of Launch Fishers, will serve as master of ceremonies.
“They will have 10 minutes to present followed by a Q&A with the three judges from the Kelley School of Business at IU, the Lacy School of Business at Butler and Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology,” said Alex Kurrelmeier, TRRSE director.
Students were chosen during similar, smaller competitions within their schools.
“Students applied to pitch and then presented their business ideas to our Entrepreneurship club after school. Mr. Bankert and Mr. Griffin then worked with the club to choose our finalists to move on,” Fishers High School assistant principal Steve Loser stated in an email.
The participants from FHS include Rachel Roberts, Charlie Bernhardt, Jackson Ousley, Nate Orecchio and Max Shores.
The ideas pitched in The Next Launch competition must be the same as what was pitched in the school competition.
“At Culver, we held our preliminary competition on March 19, so they knew as of then they were going to (The Next Launch). It has to be the same idea they presented at the preliminary competition. That’s one of the rules because that was the basis of which they won,” Kurrelmeier said.
He said he hopes the competition will grow in subsequent years.
“Next year we’re expecting to have eight-10 schools, 20-25 the year after that and then onward from there not only in school count but geographically,” Kurrelmeier said.
For more, visit rubinschool.org.
