Competitions

Thanks to an endowment by Andy and Sharlene Miclot of Austin, Texas, The Ron Rubin School for the Entrepreneur’s Miclot Family Business Plan Competition provides Culver students with a realistic competition requiring teamwork, collaboration, and field research, under the guidance of a mentor entrepreneur.

The Miclot Family Business Plan Competition is actually an opportunity assessment plan competition, and the term “business plan” is used for the sake of brevity.  This competition includes a description of the product, service, or venture and its market need. Competitive products, services, and ventures are assessed, analyzing the strengths and weaknesses of each competitor. The plan includes the unique selling propositions of the product or service, along with future growth and characteristics of the market.

Any Culver Academies student is eligible to compete in the Miclot Family Business Plan competition. Wondering how to compete? Information on next year's competition will be available in Fall 2022. 

2022 Winners

• 1^st Place ($5,000): Sean Coxhead ’24 (Palmetto Bay, FL) – National Property Consolidation Network – a business plan that removes the bank out of home mortgages and allows for smaller share investment opportunities. Mentor: Steve Medwin
• 2^nd Place ($1,000): Liam Shi ’22 (West Lafayette, IN); Marc Palicki ’22 (Glen Ellyn, IL); Aydin Turgut ’22 (South Bend, IN) – Societas – a charity platform that gamifies giving and participation by combining social media and competition. Mentor: Jack Elwood
• 3^rd Place ($500): Lena Spiller ’23 (Louisville, KY) and Monique Tamon ’23 (Novi, MI) – ZenTap – a shower system designed to both reduce usage and maintain relaxing, customizable options. Mentor: Dana Brown ’14 and former Miclot Finalist

Culver entrepreneurs compete individually in the annual Elevator Competition, a contest that requires a "big idea" and a smooth sales talk in less than three minutes, the length of an average elevator ride. Contestants make their pitch while standing before two professional entrepreneurs who act as judges.

2022 Winners

Two business concepts that would reduce waste in the food industry were selected as the winners of The Ron Rubin School for the Entrepreneur’s Elevator Competition at Culver Academies:

• Isabel Bernard ’23 (San Pedro Sula, Honduras) won the environmental/sustainability and people’s choice awards for her concept for edible silverware.
• Christian Tolksdorf ’23 (Skokie, Illinois) and Victor Zhang ’23 (Quingdao, China) won the general category with their concept on reducing food waste in the Lay Dining Hall.