MINNESOTA, USA — A team of two students from Western Michigan University (WMU) is the only team from Michigan representing students in a national entrepreneurship competition. The students are headed to the University of St. Thomas in Minnesota for the competition which kicks off Thursday.
There were only 25 teams chosen nationwide for the Schulze Entrepreneurship Competition. It’s an opportunity for student entrepreneurs across the country to network with other student entrepreneurs. Contestants will also be pitching their business ideas to a panel of judges in a competition that resembles the popular television show “Shark Tank.” There are several prizes available totaling $215,000.
The team from WMU is presenting a new app called Breaking Crucial Boundaries, offering a new take on dating apps.
The app’s creator, Imani Williams, said, “I didn’t want to be based upon my image and not valued – and I wanted to be valued upon my words and the ideas that I brought. So, that’s what I decided. This inspired to me to really just build a business upon this and build a space for the LGBT to connect and build meaningful relationships.”
She added that, “We believe that our platform will create a safe and inclusive environment where individuals can engage and foster in authentic connections.”
She told 13 ON YOUR SIDE that the app was designed to support the LGBTQ+ community and allies. Currently, it's still in the website phase, but Williams said if she wins enough money in prizes, she'll be hiring a software engineer to develop a code to create the app.
Joining Williams for the competition is her teammate, Elijah Hutchings.
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