SU SIFE wins again, heads for national championship

SU SIFE wins again, heads for national championshipApril 11, 2008Amy Schmitzaemehrin@syr.edu

A group of students representing Syracuse University’s Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) traveled to Terrytown, N.Y., to compete in the SIFE regional competition and won first place. The team’s win qualifies them for the SIFE National Exposition, which takes place in Chicago on May 13-15.

Six students represented SU SIFE at the competition, presenting the effects and outcomes of their outreach programs. The students are Tamara Feld, Sierra Fogal, April Hace, Dan Kinney, Samina Norani and Jason Pena. At the regional competition, teams gave multimedia presentations to a judging panel of business executives who determined which teams accomplished the best job of helping create economic opportunity for others.

SU SIFE was established three years ago, and the members have already won numerous competitions and participated in many service projects. The team organized relief collection efforts for victims of Hurricane Katrina, provided business consulting to Salina Shoes Salon in Syracuse’s South Side neighborhood, worked with ESL third graders on basic math and money concepts, and provided GED tutoring to women who are transitioning from living in a shelter to living independently. SU SIFE demonstrated its global outreach by visiting Guatemala last year to help women establish micro-enterprise jewelry stores.

“Our SIFE team is unstoppable this year,” says Amanda Nicholson, assistant professor at the Whitman School and SIFE faculty advisor. “They were champions at the case study competition in Arizona and now this regional win is phenomenal. I can’t wait to see how the team does in Chicago.”