Toronto, ON (Thursday, March 11, 2010) – University of Windsor’s “Students In Free Enterprise” or SIFE team has been named the 2010 TD SIFE Entrepreneurship Challenge Regional Champion by national charitable organization Advancing Canadian Entrepreneurship (ACE) and proud program supporter TD.

All Ontario and Quebec based SIFE teams were judged by live panels of business professionals, and regional champions were announced on Monday March 8th in Toronto at the 2010 ACE Central Canada Regional Exposition.

The SIFE team from Windsor (Odette School of Business) stood out to the judges because of their dedication to aspiring entrepreneurs and current business owners. Through SIFE Windsor’s efforts the following projects are currently in operation, at no cost to participants:

• Demo Camp - provides an opportunity for local aspiring entrepreneurs to present their business ideas to a panel of students, faculty, and community leaders. The panel provides their feedback on feasibility of the idea as well as strengths and weaknesses to move forward successfully. To date the team has held five events with over 280 attendees and has had over 20 ideas presented.
• FUSE - designed to give personal one-on-one advice and direction to entrepreneurs who need guidance with their businesses. SIFE Windsor’s student consultants are selected according to their experience, academic success, and entrepreneurial drive to ensure the best possible advice. To date the team has worked with 13 local business owners.

“What a feeling it is to be named a Regional Champion by ACE,” comments Tarek Dandach, Vice President of SIFE Windsor. “Our team has shown that with hard work and dedication, we can achieve our objectives.”

The end goal of this annual challenge is for SIFE teams to provide guidance and mentorship to aspiring entrepreneurs as well as work directly with local businesses to help improve their operations, profitability, and job creation. Teams have been provided the necessary tools and training from ACE to develop and implement their extensive projects to help others. The SIFE Windsor team will now move on to the national level of competition taking place in Calgary on May 11th.

TD is dedicated to making a difference in Canadian communities, and has sponsored ACE since 2001. “We know how important it is to build a foundation of leadership and entrepreneurial skills at a young age,” says Paul Douglas, Executive Vice President, TD Business Banking. “Through the TD SIFE Entrepreneurship challenge, we can play a role in growing the next leaders of Canadian businesses.”

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      

Aaron Mailloux
SIFE Windsor
519-990-9788
mailloua@uwindsor.ca

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