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SIFE

This semester, I am taking a course called MGT 450 Seminar in Management: SIFE. Students in Free Enterprise is a partnership between higher education and business. The College SIFE program is a partnership between students, business and the community. As a member of this chapter, I am able to develop partnerships and projects with profit and non-profit organizations through program design, active participation, and a presentation focus on SIFE competition. In this class thus far, I have had the privilege to work on “Roger Grein Philanthropic Project” Campus Connects which links higher education and diverse communities. As a class, our goal is to identify non-profit agencies that would most benefit from a SIFE distribution. The grant we have been entrusted with is equal to $5,000. The Students in Free Enterprise will receive $1,000 for its administration and four $1,000 grants will be distributed to four surveyed agencies. They will be chosen by their responses to a Request for Proposal prepared by the SIFE team. It is anticipated that the $1,000 grant per each individual agency will provide them with seed money to continue their start up or to help them sustain their efforts. I have also had the chance to meet and spend time with the children at Kids Café. At the agency thus far, we have worked on the computers and have presented our improved, fun and educational game board to the children. Yesterday, I had the opportunity to attend and participate in the 2008 SIFE USA Regional Competition. It was held in downtown Cincinnati at the Westin Hotel. Several students from our class and I presented our outreach projects to panels of top level business executives and entrepreneurs. There were six teams in our league. Out of six teams, only four could place and we were one of the four that placed. We received a second runner up trophy. We worked hard and put a lot of time and effort into our presentation and project. This was a good experience for me because speaking in front of an audience gave me practice for improving my communication, team building, and management skills. SIFE and the SIFE program at the Mount are wonderful programs to be involved in. It has enhanced my education and has made me a stronger person for the business world.