The SUNY New Paltz SIFE (Students In Free Enterprise) team competed against twenty-five other colleges at the NY Regional competition held April 11, 2006 at the Westchester Marriott in Tarrytown, NY. Our team included six presenters and six observers as well as support from their faculty advisors, Professors Bruce Mather and Rief Kanan. SIFE New Paltz was selected Regional Champion and they were selected as National Finalists in the Ethics criterion, sponsored by Campbell’s Soup and Sealed Air Corporation. The team’s mission now is to secure the funding needed to travel to Kansas City, MO, for the National Exposition at which they will compete for National ranking!
The presenters were lead by SIFE New Paltz President, Stacey Rivers and VP, Kyle Kerelchuk. They were well supported by their team mates, Natasha Fountain (project manager on ethics and financial literacy), Nicole Moschen (project manager on “SIFE Jeopardy”), Jaime Self (project manager on sustainability) and Katja Izzard (project manager on financial literacy and PR).
The main competition is based on the overall value and success of the school’s team related to their ability to promote free enterprise through six areas of focus: personal success skills; entrepreneurship, financial literacy, ethics, market economics and sustainability. In addition to the overall competition, outstanding teams are selected as national finalists based on their excellence in one or more of the specific criteria categories.
Schools admitted to the competition in the NY Region include Columbia U., Penn State, St. Bonaventure, Keuka College, Monroe College (2005 2-yr school National Champion), NYU, SUNY Oswego, Briarcliff College, Bloomsberg U., Brooklyn College, Centenary College, College of St. Rose, Quinnipiac, Sacred Heart, Sienna, U of Hartford, UMass Dartmouth, Worcester State College.
While at the competition, our students were recruited by many of the sponsoring organizations. Visit http://www.sife.org/regional/links/city/newyork.asp for a listing of the recruiting companies. SIFE students are a prime source of candidates for these companies because the recruiters can “see them in action”!
