Briar Cliff University Media Announcement

SIOUX CITY, Iowa – Briar Cliff University is pleased to announce finalists who will compete in the "Swimming with the Sharks" business idea competition at 7 p.m., Tuesday, March 9, in the Stark Student Center on BCU’s campus.

The finalists are from Morningside College, Sioux City, Jeremiah Hughes and Jessyka Coulter with their “E-Group” business idea and faculty sponsor Dr. Pam Mickelson; from Wayne State College, Wayne, Neb., Stacey Schaller with her “CIKRew” business idea and faculty advisor Dr. Chuck Parker; from The University of South Dakota, Vermillion, Melissa Eickman with her business idea “Inside Out Magazine” and faculty sponsor Dr. Lisa Bryan; from Briar Cliff University, Matt Collins, Jordan Hohenstein, Richard Miller II, Jon Smith and Elizabeth Walters with their business idea “CliffShop” and faculty advisor Marilyn Eastman and staff advisor Matt Gaul.

Preliminary judging for all entries was conducted by Ken Beekley, director of the Siouxland Economic Development Corporation.

Judges for the competition will be Craig Arnold, Siouxland Chamber of Commerce entrepreneur-in-residence, John Hemmingstad, director of Avalon Capital Group, and Joseph Wright, vice president of technology transfer for The Siouxland Initiative.

A $5,000 prize will be allocated to one or more of the four finalists, depending on the quality and viability of the business ideas. Prize money will be used to write a business plan, for seed money to start a new business or to grow a current business on which the plan was based.

“Swimming with the Sharks” is funded by a grant from the Siouxland Economic Development Corporation and co-sponsored by BCU’s Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) and Briar Cliff University’s Roth Center for Entrepreneurship. This free event is open to the public.

Briar Cliff University is a Catholic institution with an enrollment of more than 1,100 students from 28 states. Students are educated in the Franciscan tradition of excellence in the liberal arts and career preparation in an environment of care and compassion. For more information, please visit briarcliff.edu.