Middle and High School Student Entrepreneurs

Competed for Top Honors at Youth Entrepreneurship Fair

Generation Schools Network, Ogallala Commons and WeThrive hosted a Youth Entrepreneurship Fair for students in grades 6-12 on Tuesday, May 7, 2024 at the Wiggins Colorado Middle and High School. More than 100 Northeast Colorado students presented business plans to a panel of judges in a shark-tank style competition where top winners split $6,000 in cash awards thanks to event sponsor, Otter Cares.

“Each year, the Entrepreneurship Fair gives young entrepreneurs in rural Colorado the opportunity to develop a business plan, get real time feedback and plan a pathway forward to further develop their business concepts. Building their entrepreneurial talent, social and financial capital in their own backyard is critical to the future of rural Colorado,” Generation Schools Network CEO Wendy Loloff-Cooper said.

High School awardees included:

• $1,100 Addison Mayer with Playful Pollen Honey Co – Wiggins High School– Local honey company that tastes great while improving your response to seasonal allergies.
• $900 Annalena Werner with A Bite of Joy – Wiggins High School –A bake shop that sells unique baked goods from no-bake cookies to cake pops.
• $500 Addison Hodgson with Ringside – Eaton High School–Bringing western fashion to the community of women who show livestock.
• $300 Ashley Clement with Clement’s Precious Pointers – Wiggins High School–Local dog breeder providing purebred, certified, affordable puppies to local families.
• $200 Luka White, Amaya Kneipper, Crystal Ortega, Zach Epperson with Whiskers and Lattes – Roosevelt High School– A cat café where locals can grab a coffee, adopt a rescued cat, or have cat companionship.

Middle School awardees included:

• $600 Jaelynn Miner with Amazing Jae’s Kreations – Destinations Career Academy Middle School– Unique freeze-dried food items such as candy, fruits, and vegetables.
• $600 Brandon Adler, Cooper Hielscher, Macey Maloney with MBC Candles – Holyoke Middle School– Handmadecandles that will make your home smell fresh and clean.
• $600 Braylin Herman with Dragon Fashion – Holyoke Middle School– A clothing business to encourage school spirit.
• $600 Tate Kelley, Caleb Breyer with Pera Comics – Platte Valley Middle School– Movies and shows that truly inspire the common man and redefine what a story could be.
  $600 Izabella Talmich with BYB – Wiggins Middle School– Supportive sports socks with built-in gel pads for the athlete who doesn’t want to compromise play by trying not to get injured.

For the third year in a row, the event was sponsored by the OtterCares Foundation, which has a focus on supporting local communities and organizations that share their vision for establishing philanthropic and entrepreneurial education programs for students in Weld County. Other sponsors included Ogallala Commons, WeThrive, Colorado State University and the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment.

Organizer Generation Schools Network is a nonprofit organization that helps schools and districts throughout Colorado build college/career readiness pathways including by hosting this Youth Entrepreneurship Fair for students in Northeast Colorado. Ogallala Commons, Inc., is a nonprofit education and leadership organization that reinvigorates commonwealth to build vibrant Great Plains communities. WeThrive works to achieve economic justice and close opportunity gaps by equipping and empowering underestimated young people to rise as entrepreneurial leaders. 

For more about the I-76 Partnerships for Prosperity effort, visit coschooltowork.org/i76