CTC SIFE Team wins regional champion honors

For the 12th consecutive year, the Central Texas College (CTC) Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE) Team won the regional SIFE championship held recently in Dallas, TX. The event was one of 16 SIFE regional competitions being held across the United States in March and April. The team will now advance to the national level of SIFE competition at the SIFE USA National Exposition, May 13-15 in Chicago, IL.

Teams in the regional contest were judged on the number and effectiveness of outreach projects promoting America 's free enterprise system. Then following an oral presentation on its year-long community outreach projects to a panel of business leaders, the CTC SIFE team was named a SIFE USA Regional Champion in the overall competition and received $1,500 and a trophy. The team earned an additional $2,000 as a finalist in the SIFE USA Sam's Club Entrepreneurship Competition and the SIFE USA HSBC Financial Literacy Competition. SIFE will use the prize money to further sustain its scholarship program and develop future projects.

Faculty Advisor and Sam Walton Fellow Professor Les Ledger said, “The team's power point and oral presentation were flawless, reflecting the many hours spent on projects and presentation for competition. The projects included hosting financial empowerment/investment seminars, free enterprise presentations to various schools and workshops to assist job seekers and promote employment opportunities.”

CTC SIFE Team members are Zinnia Vargas, president; Andrew Smith, past president; Joshua Holm, president-elect; Leslie Gay, technology coordinator, Chastity Clemons, Milena Capper, Renee Abner, Jarrell Johnson and Faolan Ross.

SIFE is an international non-profit organization active on more than 1,400 college campuses in 48 countries. SIFE teams create economic opportunities in their communities by organizing outreach projects that focus on: market economics, entrepreneurship, personal financial success skills and business ethics.

During this academic year, the CTC SIFE team organized 33 projects in the Killeen, Copperas Cove community which promoted the four elements of free enterprise and the five factors of production. Participants learned the relationship between profit and competition as well as other concepts essential to the free enterprise system that make America strong.

The presentation at the regional competition included a power point briefing and an ABC News special video by John Stossel. The video discussed how self-interest plays a role in business around the world and how everyone can benefit from free enterprise. This project alone was presented 32 times reaching a total of 803 middle school, high school and college students.