Finalists include plans to make biofuel from seaweed and peelable paint
Nine finalists named in Tufts' $100K business plan and social entrepreneurship competitions at The Gordon Institute
MEDFORD/SOMERVILLE, Mass. – The nine finalists in Tufts University's fifth annual business plan competitions will present their plans to judges on March 25 on the university's Medford/Somerville campus. Five teams are competing in the Classic Business Plan Competition and four are competing in the Competition in Social Entrepreneurship.
Winning plans in each competition will receive $50,000 in cash and/or in-kind donations. Corporate sponsors for the competitions include Cummings Properties, Deloitte, Skadden Arps, Lowenstein Sandler, Web.com and The Capital Network (TCN). Coordinated through the entrepreneurial leadership program at Tufts University's Gordon Institute, the two business plan competitions allow students from schools across the university to compete.
The finalists in the Classic Business Plan Competition are:
eClinic, presented by David Buck M.D. and Justin Ko M.D. - eClinic was formed as an online service in which physicians answer users' questions on health and wellness.
Jobvid.com, presented by fourth year medical student David Glazier - Small business owners, part-time and freelance workers will be able to create detailed profiles and video uploads for an advance search engine created by Job.vid.com.
Peelable Paint, presented by Fletcher School students Michael Mintz, Kunal Gupta and Matthew Hnatio - Peelable Paint plans to manufacture paint and a primer that can be peeled from a wall by hand.
Routechooser.com, presented by junior Dan Schoening along with Michael Putterman, Owen Kirshner and Bronson Kussin - Routechooser.com will allow users to compare costs and benefits of various modes of travel including bus, car, plane and train.
Stateless Creations, presented by Gordon Institute graduate students Michael Schroll along with Nicholas Zervoglos, Peter Burke and alum Brian Gillis - Stateless Creations proposes to develop the technology that would allow users to make designs using toy building blocks and then upload the design online.
The finalists in the Competition in Social Entrepreneurship are:
Alera, presented by seniors Hai Tran, Yung Fung and Minh Nguyen - Alera proposes to cultivate a special grade of seaweed that would be used to make biofuel.
Cadenza, presented by senior Julia Torgovitskaya and also Jennifer Chernick (Stanford) - Cadenza proposes to develop greater accessibility of performing arts for college-age users through use of an online platform for information relating to performing arts events and social gatherings.
EcoTexts, presented by junior Adam Wueger and sophomores Ben Walkley, Ian Goldberg and Alex Ross - EcoTexts is a company that will provide college students with online textbooks that can be highlighted, tabbed and referenced.
The Strivers Foundation, presented by graduate biomedical engineering student Jeremy Fryer-Biggs along with Andrew Neville and Malcolm Cecil -Cockwell, who are not students at Tufts - The Strivers Foundation plans to develop business workshops for students in developing countries who have completed their secondary education but are unable to attend college.
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About Tufts University
Tufts University, located on three Massachusetts campuses in Boston, Medford/Somerville, and Grafton, and in Talloires, France, is recognized among the premier research universities in the United States. Tufts enjoys a global reputation for academic excellence and for the preparation of students as leaders in a wide range of professions. A growing number of innovative teaching and research initiatives span all Tufts campuses, and collaboration among the faculty and students in the undergraduate, graduate and professional programs across the university's schools is widely encouraged.
