In October, I flew to Waterloo, Ontario, to attend the award ceremony for the Research in Motion/Shad Entrepreneurship Cup.
I won the opportunity to participate in this competition through the Shad Valley Summer Enrichment Program. The business competition itself took place in August, and this year’s theme was “Designing for Canadian children with disabilities.”
Each team was responsible for designing a product and accompanying business plan, marketing package, promotional materials, and prototype, and as leader of the Dalhousie team, I played a major role in developing the Magic Touch, a product designed for children with fine motor disabilities who cannot hold regular markers.
It was an amazing experience, and my team’s hard work and dedication paid off, as we won many awards, including Best Business Plan, Best Website (which can be found at www.imagico.org), and Best Overall Project. In fact, we were the most successful Dalhousie Shad Cup team since the university began hosting the Shad Valley Program in 2001.
We are considering continuing with the product and possibly patenting it. It was an extremely rewarding experience, and I learned a lot about engineering and entrepreneurship. I encourage everyone in Grade 10-12 to apply to the Shad Valley program!
Julie W., Gr. 12