Atlantic City, N.J. – Sahil Gandhi was confident his new product Farmful—a subscription box that would
connect small farms with a broad range of customers—was ready to roll out.
In fact, Gandhi had run 18 financial scenarios throughout the week. But Ghandi is
no ordinary chief financial officer. The 15-year-old rising junior at Robbinsville
High School was one of 19 future business leaders during the weeklong Summer Entrepreneurship and Business Academy hosted by Stockton’s School of Business July 13-19 in Atlantic City.
This year’s theme was Monopoly, and each student was assigned to one of five teams
named after a Monopoly token. Teams created partnerships to develop a new business
venture and create a business plan they would present to a panel of judges on the
final day.
Judges:
- Monica Amadio, Assistant Professor of Business Administration Management
- Chasen Bynum GM at Fairfield Marriott in Galloway
- Caitlin Byrne, Program Assistant, School of Business
- Donna Hauer, Accreditation and Academic Programs Specialist, School of Business
- Diane Holtzman, Associate Professor Emerita Business Studies, Marketing
Throughout the week each team was advised by a Stockton faculty mentor, and they learned
about brand identity, business ethics, analytics and hospitality and tourism from
a variety of guest speakers and field trips.
“I really loved the CEOs and business executives who welcomed my interest in finance
and questions about profit margins and revenue,” said Ghandi, who knew coming into
the week he wanted the role of CFO.
Ultimately, Farmful’s thorough business plan, including a purpose-driven mission statement,
supply chain analysis, website design and financial projections was named the top
plan, winning $500, and earned the accolade of “Most Market Ready” from the judges.
Of his team’s success, Ghandi said, “I think this means I have a good grasp on what
a company has to do for financial statements. A lot of the business practices and
ideas we had for Farmful can be applied to any small business I start.”
According to Tara Marsh, SEBA program director, that’s exactly what she wants to see.
“The academy and competition transform students and help them develop a business acumen
that will take them far in whatever industry they decide to pursue.”
Hasini Vummaji, a rising junior at Edison High School, is already an entrepreneur
at age 16, as the owner of a nonprofit that teaches financial education to youth in
other countries.
A member of the “Boat” team, Vummaji said her team immediately latched on to the Monopoly
theme. “On the first day, we decided to use the theme and connect back to something
immersive and educational,” she said.
Throughout the week, her group developed the concept of a live Monopoly game show
that would be life-sized, integrated with technology and family friendly.
“This is a blend of nostalgia with innovation and reinvents Monopoly for contemporary
audiences,” she said in presenting the concept to the judges using colorful graphics
to detail their business strategy.
The judges responded by naming recognizing the Monopoly Live team with the “Best Branding”
award.
“These were some of the best presentations we have seen at SEBA so far,” said judge
Monica Amadio, who is also program chair of Stockton’s new Entrepreneurship degree.
“We firmly believe that we are building leaders who want to learn, who want to build
and who want to launch enterprises that will change the community.”
Vummaji said the range of opportunities at SEBA made it a great experience. From chatting
up Sage DelValle ’20/MBA ’21 after his presentation to seeing fireworks on the beach,
living in the beachfront Kesselman Hall, and the guidance of their team mentor Associate
Professor Christian Ehiobuche, she said the week was an “amazing experience.”
The camp is free thanks to donations by Spencer’s/Spirit Halloween and other sponsors.
– Story by Stacey Clapp, photos by Lizzie Nealis
Camp Jumpstarts Future Business, Entrepreneurial Careers
July 19, 2024
Academy last year to learn more about the business industry. Now, he’s interning with
the program and leading presentations on the stock market for students like Carter
Chew of Egg Harbor Township (left, sitting).
Atlantic City, N.J. – “So, who in here currently owns a stock?”
Only a couple of hands were hesitantly raised in the lecture room on the Stockton University Atlantic City campus among the group of 25 rising high school juniors and seniors.
Presenter Dylan Gutowski listened closely to the students’ answers – “I think I have
stock in Starbucks!” and “I’m not sure what it’s called.” Soon, the quiet room filled
with cheering and clapping as students played a virtual stock exchange game that simulated
the high stakes and fast pace of trading in the stock market.
When the students from across New Jersey weren’t diversifying their stock portfolios,
they were exploring the campus, learning the fundamentals of business and entrepreneurship
from local business leaders, and participating in a business plan competition through
the weeklong Summer Entrepreneurship and Business Academy (SEBA).
It was through SEBA that Gutowski of Rockland, New York, developed entrepreneurial
savvy and relationship-building skills that landed him an internship with the camp
just a year after winning the business plan competition.
The 16-year-old spread awareness of the academy at high schools throughout the state
and spent the week supporting students in the business plan competition and sharing
his own experiences.
“It’s really cool to be able to help these students and kind of give back to a program
that gave so much to me,” Gutowski said. “It’s also a really diverse group; like,
some people are building websites for their plans, and others are designing logos,
or they’re doing heavy research. There are so many different talents here, and a (successful)
business needs the things that each person brings to the table. (SEBA) is a really
cool team-building experience where you get to focus on using your talents for the
bigger picture.”
– Story by Loukaia Taylor
– Photos by Susan Allen
