Province Awards Student Entrepreneur Scholarship

ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT--Province Awards Student Entrepreneur Scholarships

Twenty-seven Nova Scotia students are the winners of more than $24,000 in post-secondary scholarships. Economic Development Minister Cecil Clarke presented the awards in Halifax today, Feb. 4, to the students -- young entrepreneurs who operated 21 businesses across the province last summer.

Ranging in age from 16 to 27, these young business owners participated in the Youth Entrepreneur Scholarships (YES) initiative sponsored by Nova Scotia Economic Development. Each scholarship is worth $1,000 per business. The amount is divided equally among partners when more than one student runs the business.

"These students found a niche and filled a need in their community,"said Mr. Clarke. "They experienced first-hand that Nova Scotia is a great place to live, learn and do business."

Regional scholarship selection teams -- composed of experienced entrepreneurs, business counsellors, educators, financiers and other supporters of youth entrepreneurship -- evaluated the winners' end-of-season reports and recommended the scholarship recipients.

Mr. Clarke also presented seven students with special recognition awards, in the form of $500 in additional scholarships, for excellence in key elements of successful entrepreneurship. These exceptional businesses ranged from an Internet real estate listing company to one that sold home-made organic waffles.

The special recognition awards went to:

• 1st Year Entrepreneur Achievement -- Mark's Ice Cream East Antigonish Academy student Mark Randall, 18, of Bayfield, Antigonish Co.

• Creative Effort and Customer Satisfaction -- Sparkles the Clown Riverview Rural High School student, Leanne Connors, 17, of Sydney.

• Excellence in Planning and Reporting -- Fortune Waffles Dalhousie University student Josée-Ann Clothier, 23, of Halifax.

• Most Innovative use of Resources -- Joshua's Woodworks North Queen's Rural High School student, Joshua Uhlman, 16, of Pleasant River, Queen's Co.

• Most Promising New Venture -- Closings.ca Saint Mary's University students Michael Shea (20), Matthew Conn (20) and Christopher Upham (21), all of Halifax.

"This is an exciting time for Nova Scotia," Mr. Clarke told the 150 guests gathered at the World Trade and Convention Centre. "There is no question that entrepreneurs are the driving force behind much of the record-breaking growth we are seeing."

Every year more than 25,000 Nova Scotia students learn about entrepreneurship in the province's schools, colleges and universities. Since 1984, more than 1,500 students have started businesses through entrepreneurship programs run by Economic Development. One-third of them are still in business for themselves today.

Participants in YES must be full-time students, resident in Nova Scotia, between the ages of 16 and 29, who will be attending high school or a recognized post-secondary institution in the fall. The deadline for the submission of application packages and business plans is June 30.

Students can pick up application packages from their guidance counsellors or student services offices. Detailed information can also be found on the Internet at www.gov.ns.ca/econ/yes/ , by e- mail at yes@gov.ns.ca or by calling 1-800-565-2009.

NOTE TO EDITORS: Following are the YES $1,000 scholarship winners for 2002. It is noted under each name if the student also won a $500 special recognition award.

Grace Adekola, 20, Windsor Grace is attending Saint Mary's University. In her business, named Grace, she designs and produces bracelets, rings and necklaces.

Michael Black, 22, Wolfville Michael attends Acadia University. His business, Michael Black Painting, brightened homes all around town last summer.

Christopher Cameron, 20, and Jeffrey Ellis, 19, Sydney Chris goes to the University College of Cape Breton, while Jeff is working this year. It's the third year for their business, Summer Blades, which is a well-organized summer hockey league.

Josée-Ann Cloutier, 23, Halifax Excellence in Planning and Reporting award winner Josée-Ann is a student at Dalhousie University. Through her business, Fortune Waffles, she cooked up organic home-made waffles, much to her customers' satisfaction.

Bradley Collier, 18, Bedford Bradley attends Charles P. Allen High School. Last season, he helped keep up his clients' property values by manicuring and landscaping their properties.

Leanne Connors, 17, Sydney Creative Effort and Customer Satisfaction award winner Leanne attends Riverview Rural High School. As Sparkles the Clown, Leanne brightens up birthday parties with her face paints and balloon sculptures.

Justin Croft, 16, Mill Village Justin attends Liverpool Regional High School. Last summer was spent outdoors, ensuring that his clients' lawns were clipped to perfection.

Amelia Dauphney, 18, and Jenessa MacInnis, 16, Englishtown Both Amelia and Jenessa are studying at Baddeck Academy. Their ice cream business, Chirping Chicks, provided Cape Breton tourists and residents alike with cool ice cream treats for a second season last summer.

Michael Delefes, 19, and James Aird, 18, Halifax Michael attends the American College of Greece in Athens, Greece. James is a student at the University of Western Ontario in London. Their business, Odd Jobs, provided services such as selling coffee, moving furniture, interior and exterior painting and lawn care.

Blair Falconer, 24, Halifax Blair attends Dalhousie University. His business, Atlantic Business Consultants, provided advertising to Halifax businesses on a map of the downtown Halifax business core.

Matthew Gibbon, 27, Halifax Matthew attends Dalhousie Law School. His business, Halifax Ghost Stories Pub Crawl, provided a unique tour of haunted pubs located in Halifax.

Franklin Malone, Jr., 16. Wood's Harbour Franklin attends Barrington Municipal High School. His business harvested rockweed last summer. Rockweed products keep solids in suspension in medicines, ice cream and beverages.

Matthew MacIsaac, 19, Judique Matt is a student at Saint Mary's University. Matt's Mowing provided lawn-care services for homes and businesses in his area of Cape Breton Island.

Joseph MacNeil, 18, and Chatham Fricker, 17, Ingonish Chatham is a senior at Cabot High School and Joseph attends Dalhousie University. Their business, Hot Dogs Best, gave hot dog lovers exactly what they needed last summer.

Patrick MacIvor, 19, Amherst Patrick attends Saint Mary's University. He ran Patrick's Lawn Maintenance. He mowed and clipped his way to success as he provided lawn care and did odd jobs for his clients.

Sarah McCarthy, 20, Antigonish Sarah attends St. Frances Xavier University. Her business is called Sundance Juices. She provided fresh fruit smoothies, ice- cream and milkshakes to her customers who needed a refreshing break from the hot summer.

Sean Murphy, 23, Mount Uniacke Sean is studying at Dalhouse University. He mowed and raked his way to success last summer. He provided lawn-care services to his customers.

Andrew Quinn, 17, East Bay Andrew attends Riverview High School in Sydney. His business, On the Spot Service, provided lawn-care and yard-work services.

Mark Randal, 18, Bayfield 1st Year Entrepreneur Achievement award winner Mark is a student of East Antigonish Academy. His business, Mark's Ice Cream, provided ice-cream cones to local residents and passing tourists.

Michael Shea, 20, Christopher Upham, 21, and Matthew Conn, 20, Halifax Most Promising New Venture award winners All three students attend Saint Mary's University. They are sold on their business, Closings.ca . It's the age of "cyber buy and sell" and their Web site shows how easy it is to find your dream home anywhere in Nova Scotia.

Joshua Uhlman, 16, Pleasant River Most Innovative Use of Resources award winner Joshua attends North Queen's Rural High School. Through his business, Joshua's Wood Works, he provided firewood to customers and designed, built and sold decorative bird houses.