Shaw University Students Take Top Prizes in Business Plan Pitch Competition 

RALEIGH, N.C. – Two Shaw University students were accepted and advanced to participate in the Main Street Entrepreneurship Accelerator program – part of the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center’s partnership with Wake Tech Community College – winning first and second place as part of a business plan pitch competition. The Accelerator required students to pitch their business plans multiple times through an elimination process with the finals taking place on May 3. 

NEAM Technology Solutions – led by Shaw student Blaise Dampier and university classmates Elikem Des-Amekudi, Nicholas Perez, Shaw alumnus Andrew Anglin, and colleague Myles Joubert – pitched a software development company and took home the first-place prize of $25,000. Devin Versteegen won the second-place prize of $7,500 for DT Media & Rentals, his photography, cinematography, and gear rental venture. There were nine students from several schools admitted into the accelerator program. 

Overall, five Shaw University students successfully completed the Entrepreneurship for Skilled Trades and Professionals course offered by Wake Tech Community College. The course serves as a pathway for students from both Wake Tech and Shaw to participate in Wake Tech’s Main Street Entrepreneurship Accelerator program where students competed to win a combined $42,500 in grant money for their businesses. 

Dr. T. Nichole Phillips, Director of Shaw’s Innovation and Entrepreneurship Center – within the School of Business and Professional Studies – said: “This places our students in a great position to enhance their knowledge of entrepreneurship, create a business plan, and hone their pitch skills as they compete for these funds. It also increases the likelihood that Shaw University students will benefit by receiving much-needed seed money for their entrepreneurial endeavors. I look forward to witnessing the entrepreneurial growth in our students that will result from this program. I am extremely proud of them, and they are elated at their accomplishments. I look forward to watching their ventures grow and thrive!”

Shaw University, located in Raleigh, North Carolina, is the first historically Black institution of higher education founded in North Carolina and is among the oldest in the nation. The University was founded in 1865 by Henry Martin Tupper. Dr. Paulette Dillard currently serves as the University’s 18th President. For more information, visit: www.shawu.edu