Collegiate Challenge Season 5
Series Sponsor: Maine DECD
Season 5 Judges
Martha Bentley
Small Business Entrepreneurship Development
Maine DECD
Skip Bates
Director of Main Street Banking
Bangor Savings Bank
Lynne Darling Melochick
Director of Community Relations
Darling’s Auto Group
Episode One - Aired January 19
TrustedRentr vs. Nook Storage
Company: TrustedRentr
Contestants: Steve Doman/John Peters (Co-Founders)
School: University of Maine
Company: Nook Storage
Contestants: George DeLana/Rachael Rosow (Co-Founders)
School: Bates College
Featuring Sunday Morning Conversation guest Jim Dinkle, Executive Director at First Park.
Episode Two - Airing January 26
Green Bait vs. Tree Free Heat
Company: Green Bait
Contestants: Jillian Robillard (Owner/Operator)
School: UNE
Company: TreeFreeHeat
Contestants: Dylan Veilleux (Founder)
School: Thomas
Featuring Sunday Morning Conversation guest United States Senator Angus S. King, Jr.
Episode Three - Airing February 2
Ferda Farms vs. Grow Your Own Way
Company: Ferda Farms
Contestants: Max Burtis (Founder/CEO) & Sam Dorval (Co-Owner/CMO)
School: University of Maine
Company: Grow Your Own Way
Contestants: Rebecca Barulli (Founder/CEO)
School: St. Joseph’s College of Maine
Featuring Sunday Morning Conversation guest Heather Johnson, Comissioner, Maine DECD.
Episode Four - Airing February 9
GEIONS Retail vs. Sklaza
Company: GEIONS Retail
Contestants: Derek Foy (President)
School: Husson
Company: Sklaza, LLC
Contestants: Joshua Kim (Founder/CEO)
School: Colby
Featuring Sunday Morning Conversation guest Martha Bentley, Small Business Entrepreneurship Development, Maine DECD.
Episode Five - Airing February 16
Bridal Vision vs. Weart
Company: Bridal Vision
Contestants: Hannah Marr (Founder)
School: Husson
Company: Weart, LLC
Contestants: Torsten Brinkema (Owner)
School: Colby
Featuring Sunday Morning Conversation guest Angela Okafor, Attorney/Entrepreneur, Okafor Law.
Episode Six - Airing February 23
Gait Project X (GPX) vs. Family Time Memory Software
Company: Gait Project X
Contestants: Keith Reilly (Product Manager) & Raja Muthyam (Co-Product Owner)
School: UNE
Company: Family Time Memory Software
Contestants: Xander Karris (CEO/Co-Founder) & Willem Hilliard (CTO and Co-Founder)
School: University of Maine
Featuring Sunday Morning Conversation guest Katey Shorey, Director of Engagement/President, Live+Work in Maine/ Startup Maine.
Episode Seven - Airing March 1
Easy Eats vs. Find My College Roommate
Company: Easy Eats
Contestants: Katharine Dougherty/Christian Krohg (Co-Founders)
School: Colby
Company: Find My College Roommate
Contestants: Evan Horenstein (Founder)
School: University of Maine
Featuring Sunday Morning Conversation guest Alyne Cistone, Founder, Global Tides Consulting.
Episode Eight - Airing March 8
Easy Unlocker vs. LetsGoBagz
Company: LetsGoBagz
Contestants: Suzie Milkowich (CEO/Chief Energy Officer)
School: University of Maine
Company: Easy Unlocker
Contestants: Steven Ferrarese (CEO)
School: University of Maine
Featuring Sunday Morning Conversation guest Cary Weston, President, Sutherland Weston.
Targeting as many Maine colleges as wish to participate, we will produce 13 television shows in Season 5 highlighting the best full or part-time college students, who have a business idea in any stage of development; from a simple idea to a well-constructed business plan. Those 13 shows, each pitting 2 college business ideas against one another, will be videotaped around the second week of January 2020 at NESCOM on the Husson University campus. The 13 semi-finalists established from that round would then square off in a non-televised pitch-off to determine the 3 best collegiate entrepreneurs. Those 3 finalists will then pitch off against one another in the Greenlight Maine Collegiate Finale to compete for the grand prize of $25,000 in cash.
Tentative List of Maine Colleges who may participate
Bates
Bowdoin
Colby
College of the Atlantic
Husson Univ.
Maine College of Art
Maine Maritime
St. Joseph’s College
Maine Community Colleges
Thomas College
Unity
University of Maine
University of New England
University of Southern Maine
Establishing the 26 entrepreneurs who will pitch on the 13 shows
Each school will identify the best student submissions based on the criteria proposed below. Those 30 or more entrepreneurs will then need to be available to pitch off against a panel of independent judges. Those judges will have no affiliation with any Maine college, neither alum nor employment. For this round, each student will only be identified by a number (no names-no college affiliations). Each presenter will make a 3-minute pitch followed by 10 minutes of Q & A from the panel of judges. Contestants must be enrolled in a Maine college for some part of the 2019/20 calendar year. Props and powerpoint will be allowed in this round. The judges will be using the following criteria on which to determine the 26 final contestants for Season 5 Collegiate Challenge.