WKU SIFE Team Regional Champs Third Year In A Row

March 26, 2007

Bowling Green, Ky. -The Western Kentucky University Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE) team won the Regional Championship at the SIFE Competition in Cincinnati on March 20 for the third straight year.  Sixteen teams competed for cash prizes.  The team now advances to the national finals to be held in Dallas May 6-8. 
           
The WKU SIFE team created projects that taught participants about market economics, personal success skills, entrepreneurship, financial literacy, business ethic, and sustainability.  The team prepared a 24-minute presentation with multi-media support detailing how the team’s projects prepared its members for business careers and demonstrating the value of the free market system.  The competitive format includes a written annual report and a live audio-visual presentation.
           
Examples of the team’s 19 projects included opening and operating a successful print center on campus, educating elementary students about supply chain economics by using chocolate as an international product, helping senior citizens protect their financial assets, and polishing professional skills at an etiquette banquet. 
           
A written comment received from one of the judges stated, “While the presentation itself, and the skills of the presenters were obvious, I was honestly more impressed with the projects selected, the rationale why they were selected, and the commitment to a quality execution of them.”
           
The team also won three of the six special topic competitions in the categories of personal success skills, financial literacy, and business ethics.  WKU SIFE has been Regional Champion all three years they have competed. 

The SIFE Team President, senior Juraj Lord of Bowling Green, says he is incredibly pleased to have the team named regional champions again this year and that the success was made possible thanks to the long hours of hard work from the team. 

The 19 members of the 30-person team that traveled to Cincinnati consisted of Lord, Nathan Almes of Princeton, Bryan Brewster of Somerset, Jonathan Carter of Bowling Green, Natalie Denney of Monticello, Frank Easley of Louisville, Renee Hadorn of Bowling Green, Adriane Howell of Tell City, Ind., Shannon Kleis of Bowling Green, John Lamon of Bowling Green, Grady Marks of Franklin, Tenn., John Newton of New Haven, Ron Ryne of Bowling Green, Leslie Sanderfur of Bowling Green, Saurin Shaw of India, Eliza Straney of Brandenburg, Lauren Torger of Park Ridge, Ill., LaToya Valentin of Bowling Green, and Craig Waisbrot of Bowling Green. 

“It is most important that we thank our faculty advisors Dr. Leo Simpson and Mr. J. Krist Schell for the framework they have provided us to succeed along our competitive journey,” Lord said.  “We cannot thank them enough for the support they have provided in our future and we shall do our utmost to continue our successes in tribute to them."

Dr. Leo Simpson said he is proud of the SIFE team. “By becoming passionate about SIFE principles, ordinary students have become extraordinarily professional,” he said. 

More WKU news is available at www.wku.edu. If you’d like to receive WKU news via e-mail, send a message to WKUNews@wku.edu.

For more information, contact J. Krist Schell, (270) 745-6864.