Barton County's fourth annual Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge will be live on Wednesday, March 6 at 12 p.m. at the Great Bend Events Center, 3111 10th Street. This competition for 7th-grade through 12th-grade students from Barton County is brought to the community by Great Bend Economic Development and the Great Bend Chamber of Commerce.
This competition was created to challenge youth, encourage the business community to partner with and mentor younger generations and foster an entrepreneurial spirit. This event is also made possible by a partnership with NetWork Kansas.
Great Bend Economic Development and the Great Bend Chamber partner in this competition as both organizations are tasked with strengthening the area’s workforce for the business community, and in this case, that means nurturing the next generation’s entrepreneurs.
Students and judges have lunch together to break the ice, and then competitors will begin their formal 4-minute presentations to the judges at noon. The public is invited and encouraged to attend this event to cheer on the student competitors and show their support for the next generation of business ideas, and the winners will be announced at approximately 2 p.m.
There is $2,500 in prize money to be divided among the top competitors. Third place will receive $500, second place will receive $750, and first place will receive $1,000 and the opportunity to continue onto the state-level competition. Audience members will have a chance to vote for their favorite and award the People’s Choice to one competitor as well as $250.