Kid Fitness Program and Mobile Money Transfer Service Both Take Top Prize in
UMD Social Impact Pitch Competition
College Park, Md. – March 14, 2013 — Competition was so close among University
of Maryland student social entrepreneurs that judges awarded two top winners in
a recent “No Limits Social Impact Pitch Competition.”
The recent competition was an official University of Maryland Fearless Ideas
event, and part of the Social Enterprise Symposium - a daylong affair on March 1
that explores the role of business in social and environmental change, hosted by
the Center for Social Value Creation at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith
School of Business.
School fitness program KidFit and international mobile money transfer service
Payvius shared the first-place status, but not the prize money. In a surprising
turn of events, the judges decided to pitch in additional money and award $3,000
top prizes to each company. KidFit also took home the audience-selected People’s
Choice Award for $500. In addition to the cash prizes, the winners will also benefit
from in-kind mentoring services from the Center for Social Value Creation’s entrepreneurship
network including Ashoka, ThinkImpact, and PunchRock.
The winners were among five finalists who pitched their ideas to improve their
communities and the world before a panel of judges and a live audience. Each had
six minutes to pitch their idea and four minutes to answer questions from judges.
The competition capped off the content portion of the Center for Social Value Creation’s
fifth annual symposium event, which attracted more than 1,000 students from across
campus. The “No Limits” finalists also represented UMD’s diverse student population
passionate in social value creation and using business principles to create a better
world – the main vision on the center.
Maggie Croushore, a master’s of public policy student, runs KidFit. She is currently
working with schools to improve their active education (traditionally physical education
and recess) delivery.
Mondiu Ladejobi, an executive MBA student, launched Payvius. The low-cost mobile
money transfer service enables secure international money transfers from a sender
in the United Sates to any mobile phone in sub-Saharan Africa, and provides recipients
with the opportunity to build credit in developing economies.
Competition judges were Jigar Shah, consultant, entrepreneur and author of "The
Impact Economy;" Devin Schain, founder & CEO of Campus Direct Inc.; and Lisa Hall,
president and CEO of Calvert Foundation, who also delivered the symposium’s afternoon
keynote speech.
Other finalists in the competition were:
- Microjusticia, a nonprofit offering pro bono legal services to NGOs in Argentina
– run by Juan Bellocq (master’s of public policy, 2013)
- Destinalo.com, a website that connects local and family-owned tourism businesses
with independent travelers – run by Cristina Huidobro (master’s of community planning,
2013)
- ProCity, a network for donating unwanted items that benefits charities – run
by Christopher Lane (undergraduate, majoring in psychology and theater, 2015)
The competition is led by the Center for Social Value Creation in partnership
with the School of Public Policy’s Center for Philanthropy and Nonprofit Leadership,
with support from the Smith School’s Dingman Center for Entrepreneurship.
About the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business
The Robert H. Smith School of Business is an internationally recognized leader
in management education and research. One of 12 colleges and schools at the
University of Maryland, College Park, the Smith School offers undergraduate,
full-time and part-time MBA, executive MBA, executive MS, PhD and executive
education programs, as well as outreach services to the corporate community. The
school offers its degree, custom and certification programs in learning
locations in North America and Asia.
