Rhode Island Business Plan Competition Announces High School Track, New Sponsors

PROVIDENCE – (Nov. 26, 2007) – The Rhode Island Business Plan Competition today announced that it will include a high school track in its annual competition, the first time high school students will be invited to compete since the event was established in 2000.

At the same time, the competition announced that the Slater Technology Fund, a state funded organization that aims to launch new Rhode Island-based high-tech companies, and The Mergis Group, a Providence based professional recruiting firm, agreed to support the 2008 competition as sponsors.

The new sponsors bring to 33 the number of organizations sponsoring the Rhode Island Business Plan Competition.

“We’re delighted that the Slater Fund and the Merging Group are supporting us. They along with the 31 other sponsors are the reason we can hold the competition,” said Competition Co-chair Garrett B. Hunter, president of the Business Development Company of Rhode Island.

High School Track Winner Eligible to Win $1,000

The new high school track expands the number of competition tracks. The others are a student track, which applies to college and graduate students, and an entrepreneur track, which essentially includes anyone else.

The high school track will award a single prize of $1,000 to the winner. Any student enrolled in an accredited high school in Rhode Island, including public, private, charter, religious, and home schools, may apply.

“We decided to expand the competition to high schoolers since more and more are getting the entrepreneurial bug. We’d love them to compete, and look forward to receiving their applications,” said Co-chair Charles Kingdon, associate vice president of Brown technology partnerships at Brown University.

The 2008 Rhode Island Business Plan Competition will award $150,000 in prizes to the winners and runners-up of the entrepreneur and student tracks.

Sponsors of the 2008 Rhode Island Business Plan Competition

Sponsors of the 2008 Rhode Island Business Plan Competition include: Hinckley, Allen & Snyder LLP, Kahn, Litwin, Renza & Co., Ltd., Seyfarth Shaw, Brown University, Edwards Angell Palmer & Dodge, LLP, Embolden Design, and Nortek, Inc.

Also supporting the competition are: Brown Forum for Enterprise, Business Development Company of Rhode Island, Cherrystone Angel Group, CVS Caremark, Federal Electronics, Inc., Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce, Johnson and Wales University, Point Judith Capital, Providence Business News, Rhode Island Commodores, Rhode Island Economic Development Corporation, Slater Technology Fund, Bryant University, Citizens Bank of Rhode Island, Item Group, Starkweather & Shepley Insurance Brokerage, Inc., Heartlab/Agfa, Naval Undersea Warfare Center, RDW Group, Rhode Island Society of Certified Public Accountants, Salve Regina University, Smith Barney, Software Quality Associates, The Employers Association, The Mergis Group, and University of Rhode Island.

Complete information, including rules, application procedures, guidelines, and business plan resources, is available at www.ri-bizplan.com.