Toronto, ON (Wednesday, March 3, 2010) – College of the North Atlantic, St. John’s “Students In Free Enterprise” or SIFE team has been named the 2010 HSBC SIFE Financial Education Challenge Regional Champion by national charitable organization ACE and proud program supporter HSBC Bank Canada.

All Atlantic based SIFE teams were judged by live panels of business professionals, and regional champions were announced on Friday February 26th in Halifax at the 2010 ACE Atlantic Regional Exposition, proudly supported by the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA).

The SIFE team from CNA, St. John’s stood out to the judges because of their dedication to breaking the cycle of poverty with financial education in their community. The team’s “Life with SIFE” project involves teaching young people, between 12 and 18 years old, the financial skills necessary to create change in their lives and the lives of others. The SIFE team conducts weekly meetings with 12 local young people, including a money management session with topics such as budgeting, savings, investments, student loans and credit card usage.

"It has truly been an eye opening year for our team,” explains SIFE St. John’s CNA President, Elizabeth O’Keefe. “We look forward to expanding our projects and the impact we have on others, one individual at a time."

The end goal of this annual challenge is for SIFE teams to help improve the ability of others, in their community, to make informed and positive financial decisions. Teams have been provided the necessary tools and training from ACE to develop and implement their extensive projects to help others. The CNA, St. John’s team will now move on to the national level of competition taking place in Calgary on May 11th.

“HSBC Bank Canada has been instrumental in leading this national initiative and we thank them for their continued support”, explains ACE President, Amy Harder    . “I would also like to thank ACOA for their support in Atlantic Canada; with their assistance we continue to provide a platform for young easterner’s to explore entrepreneurship as a viable career option.” 

About ACE
Founded in the mid-1980s, Advancing Canadian Entrepreneurship (ACE) is a national, charitable organization that is teaching and igniting young Canadians to create brighter futures for themselves and their communities. ACE delivers a team-based program called Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE) and an individual-based program, the Student Entrepreneur National Competition. These programs provide university and college students access to real world experience, through the implementation of outreach projects and business ventures that complement in-class studies. Students involved in ACE make a meaningful contribution to their communities today, and discover their potential to achieve an even greater impact as the leaders of tomorrow. Last year, ACE students created 600 jobs, logged 260,000 volunteer hours, impacted 63,000 people, and generated over $40 million in economic activity. ACE is currently established on over 50 post-secondary campuses across Canada.

Contact:
Jaime Szegvary
Communications Consultant, ACE
416.619.8994
jaime@acecanada.ca      

Laurie Butler
Vice-President, SIFE St. John's, CNA
709.690.6300
laurie.butler@hotmail.com

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