Top teams to compete in Tri-State Competition in Las Vegas
Winners of the 2015 Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup Collegiate Business Plan Competition that is managed by The Arkansas Economic Acceleration Foundation, an affiliate of The Arkansas Capital Corporation Group, were announced today at a luncheon hosted at the Statehouse Convention Center in Little Rock, Ark. Mike Preston, executive director of the Arkansas Economic Development Commission, served as the master of ceremonies for the event, which hosted approximately 760 business leaders, students, educators and supporters from across the state for the 15th annual Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup. This year, 47 teams submitted business plans from 12 colleges and universities from across Arkansas for a chance to win a share of the $152,000 prize pool. First and second place winners of the undergraduate and graduate teams will compete against the top two teams from Nevada and Oklahoma for the Donald W. Reynolds Tri-State Award in May, where they will be competing to win a share of the $118,000 prize pool. The 2015 Donald W. Reynolds Governor’s Cup winners are: Undergraduate AT&T Elevator Pitch Award – $2,000 TIRE – Harding University Graduate AT&T Elevator Pitch Award – $2,000 Saf-Tech – Arkansas State University Undergraduate Delta Plastics Innovation Award – $5,000 Conner Innovation – University of Arkansas Graduate Delta Plastics Innovation Award – $5,000 Agricultural Innovations – Arkansas State University 1st Place Agriculture Award – $5,000 Baby Booster – University of Arkansas 2nd Place Agriculture Award – $3,000 Agricultural Innovations – Arkansas State University
Undergraduate Business Plan Winners
1st Place – $25,000 TIRE – Harding University 2nd Place – $15,000 Charlie’s Choices – John Brown University 3rd Place – $10,000 Opt-In – John Brown University
Graduate Business Plan Winners
(Please note that a correction has been made to the order of the top three winners from what was announced at today’s luncheon.) 1st Place – $25,000 Agricultural Innovations – Arkansas State University 2nd Place – $15,000 Kordate Solutions Inc. – University of Arkansas 3rd Place – $10,000 Baby Booster – University of Arkansas The Arkansas Capital Corporation Group of companies empower entrepreneurs by providing capital in conjunction with community banks to businesses through its capital availability products and advocating for entrepreneurs through capital, educational, and technological improvements. The Arkansas Capital Corporation Group serves as the platform from which new opportunities are launched. In addition to the flagship company, Arkansas Capital Corporation, there are seven affiliate and partner companies, including, Six Bridges Capital Corporation, Arkansas Capital Relending Corporation, Arkansas Economic Acceleration Foundation, Heartland Renaissance Fund, Connect Arkansas, Pine State Regional Center, and SouthWind Analytics. To learn more, visit www.arcapital.com. The Arkansas Economic Acceleration Foundation (AEAF) was established in 1999, and is a private, nonprofit corporation dedicated to education-based initiatives that promote and foster the development of innovation and entrepreneurship within Arkansas. With broad support from the state’s business community, AEAF’s purpose is to nurture people and ideas to generate future Arkansas entrepreneurs.
