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Ernst & Young Announces Winners of Your World, Your Vision Campus Competition
Ernst & Young Announces Winners of Your World, Your Vision Campus Competition
Published 03-30-09
Submitted by Ernst & Young
March 30, 2009 - Ernst & Young LLP today announced the three winning teams for the 2009 Your World, Your Vision campus competition. The competition, which had entries from more than 60 colleges and universities, invited teams of students to develop and submit proposals for how they could make a difference in their communities in the areas of education, entrepreneurship, or the environment. The winning teams are from University of Calgary, University of Minnesota, and University of Southern California. Each team will receive $10,000 from Ernst & Young LLP to implement the programs.
"In these challenging times, we cannot forget our responsibility to the communities in which we live and work. Through Your World, Your Vision, we want students to understand that our firm is interested in more than their professional skills. We're looking for candidates who share our same values and who are passionate about making a difference," noted Dan Black, Director of Campus Recruiting in the Americas for Ernst & Young LLP. "Our firm channels corporate responsibility efforts into three key areas: education, entrepreneurship, and the environment. We are very excited to fund these winning programs and to see the impact these talented students will have on their communities in these critical areas."
The idea, approach, and title of the community programs for this competition were left up to the students. Highlighting the importance of teamwork, the students were asked to form teams and submit creative programs that would have significant impact in their communities - on campus, in a nearby town or city, or in a virtual community. An Ernst & Young LLP advisor worked with the teams throughout the challenge, offering advice, insight, and other tips.
A panel of firm leaders evaluated all submissions and named the three winning programs. Here's an overview of the winning entries:
University of Minnesota - Twin Cities
Team Members: Matt Norris, Asha Sharma
Winning Program: TeenWorks Presents: The A-List
TeenWorks, a non-profit being started by students at the University of Minnesota, is designed to introduce underprivileged kids to entrepreneurship, employment skills and college career planning. Through the teen-led business "The A-List," program participants will be responsible as front-line staff and business leaders of a store that will offer healthy snacks, custom apparel and a safe environment, while also promoting education and personal growth. Revenue from the store will support programs that also occur at the store - tutoring from college students, job search help and business mentor networking. TeenWorks has already enlisted support from local businesses and colleges, the City of Brooklyn Park, and Fortune 500 companies.
University of Southern California
Team Members: Kan Cao, Thomas Chow, Kasumi Kayce, Theresa Lee, Yu Cheng Li, Jennifer Lin, Milton Massery, Kristyn Miura, James Naito, Arindra Prakasa
Winning Program: JumpStart
JumpStart is a local, after-school program designed to empower students to plan for a long-term, fulfilling, and successful career, rather than simply getting a job that immediately meets their needs after high school. Working with a local non-profit which focuses on providing a positive alternative to joining gangs (which are very prevalent in the area) JumpStart will offer mentoring to students on a weekly basis and also offer monthly career and college-related seminars. The goals of the program are to inspire 50% of the high school seniors to apply to college and have at least 25% attend college; expand horizons by educating the students on career opportunities and encouraging them to research two or three options; and, finally, prepare the students for the professional world through seminars related to presenting professionally, resume writing and interview skills.
University of Calgary
Team Members: Samantha Ma, Ryan Anderson, Carlos Cruz, Alex Watterworth, Rushil Barua, Tim Young, Christi Merkel, Alicea Wiercinski, Brandon Keating, Ryan Stearne, Theresa Duong, Gurpreet Chahal, Rashida Bhaiji, Michael Lam
Winning Program: Learn2Grow
Learn2Grow is an initiative to implement a community naturalization garden at an underserved community in Northeast Calgary. Beginning with one elementary school, the program will create a garden featuring plant species native to Alberta. Once established, the garden can be expanded to include a vegetable garden, which will offer the opportunity for students to gain entrepreneurial experience. Through this garden, teachers will have the opportunity to teach science and environmental sustainability, the students will have the opportunity to have hands-on learning through cultivation of the garden, and the local community will have the opportunity to get involved in sustaining and growing the garden to benefit future generations.
Ernst & Young LLP advisors will stay connected to these winning teams to help them implement their community programs over the coming months.
About Ernst & Young
Ernst & Young is a global leader in assurance, tax, transaction and advisory services. Worldwide, our 135,000 people are united by our shared values and an unwavering commitment to quality. We make a difference by helping our people, our clients and our wider communities achieve their potential.
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Ernst & Young refers to the global organization of member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young LLP is a client-serving member firm of Ernst & Young Global Limited located in the U.S. This news release has been issued by Ernst & Young LLP, a client-serving member firm of Ernst & Young Global Limited located in the U.S.
