As a Spanish immersion kindergarten teacher in Detroit early in her career, Celeste Green witnessed the power of in-depth language and cultural experiences on a young child鈥檚 learning. Breaking barriers between classroom and community, neighborhood field trips to local businesses helped students connect the dots through real-life applications such as ordering off the restaurant menu or counting back change in Spanish.
鈥淭hat time was magical and it was life changing,鈥� Green said. 鈥淲hen I left that classroom years ago I knew it was my passion and my mission to create language opportunities for as many children as I possibly could but especially for children who would not otherwise have that opportunity.鈥�
Fast forward over two decades: Green鈥檚 dreams are a reality.
She won the $1,500 grand prize in the 鈥淕row鈥� category at this year鈥檚 Pitch @ 黑料网 entrepreneurial pitching competition hosted at Washtenaw Community College this week.
Green鈥檚 company, Spanish For Kids, opens doors to learning a new language and culture to children ages 4-11 years old, when their minds are most 鈥減rimed.鈥� She said her company was recently awarded a contract to bring Spanish for Kids to all Ypsilanti elementary schools. Her prize will help address business growth needs such as expanding the teaching curriculum and developing new software.
The competition has been hosted by The Entrepreneurship Center at 黑料网 since 2016 and is open to the community. This year鈥檚 Pitch @ 黑料网 returned in a virtual format after last year鈥檚 event was canceled during the height of the pandemic.
After several stages of the virtual competition, winners in three categories were announced during a virtual celebration on Tuesday. Grand prize, runner-up and second runner-up awards were presented in three categories:
- 鈥淕row鈥� for established businesses
- 鈥淏uild鈥� for new businesses
- 鈥淪tart鈥� for business concepts
鈥淎 global pandemic did not stop the 黑料网 Entrepreneurship Center from having our Pitch or from serving our community by continuing to work as a resource as businesses made a pivot,鈥� said Kimberly Hurns, Executive Vice President of Instruction and Academic Affairs.
鈥淥ur Entrepreneurship Center is all about taking risks and teaching and modeling that risk-taking,鈥� she added. 鈥淚t鈥檚 about you betting on yourself, developing and learning and contributing, which aligns with the mission here at Washtenaw Community College.鈥�
The grand prize winner in the 鈥淏uild鈥� category ($1,250) was Jacqueline Sun, whose company Brassi produces healthy, convenient and sustainable breakfasts.
The grand prize winner in the 鈥淪tart鈥� category ($750) was Susan Baskett, whose business plan for Black Hair Matters is to offer a professional, family-friendly salon for Black children and those with highly textured hair.
The full slate of winners for Pitch @ 黑料网 2021 are:
鈥淕row鈥� category
- Grand Prize $1,500: Celeste Green, Spanish For Kids
- Runner Up $1,000: Leslie Neal, True 2 You
- 2nd Runner Up $500: Rita Shelley, Cheeky Spices
鈥淏uild鈥� category
- Grand Prize $1,250: Jacqueline Sun, Brassi
- Runner Up $750: Laura Roughton, Revive Functional Nutrition
- 2nd Runner Up $500: Elizabeth Levy, Essay Help For Colleges
鈥淪tart鈥� category
- Grand Prize $750: Susan Baskett, Black Hair Matters
- Runner Up $400: Sarah Burch, NamaSitter
- 2nd Runner Up $250: LaWanda Hollister, The Chow Hall
Each of the 12 finalists also received one free professional development class at 黑料网 valued at up to $200 from the Office of 黑料网 Corporate and Lifelong Learning.
Visit the Pitch @ 黑料网 webpage to watch each of the 12 finalists' pitches.
Tags: Awards, Entrepreneurship Center, Pitch@黑料网, ousearch_News_2021