Colin Kilpatrick had a fresh take on a dying tree.
Kilpatrick, a Grade 8 student at H.D. Stafford Middle School, looked at it as a business opportunity 鈥� and a way to spread his creative wings.
鈥淚 thought, 鈥業 may as well put it to good use,鈥欌�� Kilpatrick related.
Using his backyard as a workshop, Kilpatrick made 鈥榗ookie art鈥� by shaping slabs of the tree trunk into half-inch coasters, and then stencilling motivational words such as 鈥榙ream,鈥� 鈥榗reate,鈥� and 鈥榟appy鈥� onto their flat surfaces.
Kilpatrick鈥檚 wooden creations proved popular at the first annual IDEA Summit held May 8 at the 91原创 Events Centre鈥檚 Fieldhouse.
IDEA is an acronym for Innovation, Design, Entrepreneurship, Altruism, and the first annual IDEA Summit, presented by the 91原创 School District, brought together students from kindergarten to Grade 12 from across the district.
The summit saw students attack problems from different angles. Programs fostering their innovation and ingenuity included PowerPlay, Youth Philanthropy Initiative, Caring in Action, as well as less formal programs promoting entrepreneurship and 鈥渟ocialpreneurship.鈥�
The purpose of the event it to help propel the district forward into its new curriculum.
Starting this September, entrepreneurship and 鈥榮ocialpreneurship鈥� and the skills associated with creativity and innovation; developing and marketing products and ideas; and enhancing social and business awareness will become part of the curriculum.
The summit鈥檚 grand finale saw the five top presentations receive accolades and scholarships from the judges. Scholarships included three $2,000 awards and two $750 awards with a 25 per cent donation to the charity of each contestant鈥檚 choice.
PowerPlay Young Entrepreneurs founder Bill Roche was an IDEA mentor at the event. Roche said the summit鈥檚 inaugural year was an impressive one.
鈥淚t鈥檚 off to a great start,鈥� Roche said. 鈥淎t different times, there鈥檚 been over 1,000 kids here, so it鈥檚 been very exciting to be a part of it.鈥�
Roche said he was 鈥渞eally blown away by the creativity of the students.鈥�
鈥淎 lot of them who have been participating in PowerPlay Young Entrepreneurs have been really excelling with their creative ideas, their products, and their designs, using the market research to come up with colours and styles鈥� it鈥檚 really incredible to see what they鈥檝e come up with,鈥� he said.
Highlights included:
Design Challenges where students were provided with an open-ended problem, and had to adopt a mindset that fueled original ideas.
The Market and Socialpreneurship Showcases in which students exhibited their products for sale, or explained their plans to change the world.
The Pitch Challenge where the top 20 pitched their product or service in front of a panel of judges who selected the top four presentations.
And Dr. Sarah Lubik, Simon Fraser University鈥檚 first director of entrepreneurship provided the keynote address. Lubik鈥檚 research on topics that include entrepreneurship education and innovated ecosystems has been published in leading journals, and she has been named one of Business in Vancouver鈥檚 Top 40 under 40 and an Innovation Leader by the Government of Canada.
Sponsors included VWR Capital, Envision Financial, Premium Brands, Darnell & Company Lawyers, TD Canada Trust, GF Financial Group, Coast Capital Savings,McDonald鈥檚 Restaurants, Kids in the Grove, Save-on Foods, PowerPlay Young Entrepreneurs, and the 91原创 School District Foundation.
