Students Set For I-69 Innovation Challenge

20 students competed in last year's challenge. (photo courtesy Grant County Economic Growth Council)

The Grant County Economic Growth Council is hosting its I-69 Collegiate Innovation Challenge this weekend in Plymouth. The competition will feature teams of students from five area universities creating for-profit business plans that address current economic or social issues.

The teams will consist of five students, one each from Indiana Wesleyan University, Taylor University, Huntington University, Ivy Tech Community College and Grace College. The organization says a panel of five judges will choose the winning team based on "creation and innovation, potential for making a difference, profitability, ease of implementation, team cooperation, and the ability of team to communicate their plan."

Each member of the winning team will receive $500. Each member of the second place team will receive $250 and each member of the third place team will receive $100. The judges panel includes representatives from the Community Investment Fund of Indiana, St. Joe CEO, Cambridge Capital Management Corp., Integrating Woman Leaders Foundation and the Indiana Economic Development Corp. 

The I-69 Collegiate Innovation Challenge was established in 2006 as a means to encourage entrepreneurship among students. You can read more about last year’s competition by clicking here.