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SPOKANE, Wash. – Three Gonzaga University sophomores won first place among 38 competitors at the Sparks Weekend entrepreneurship competition, making them eligible for $50,000 in seed money for their business, Zaps.
Another Gonzaga student, Anna Deschane, joined a team that won second place for its venture, Gameleon Boards.
All four GU students are pursuing minors in the Hogan Entrepreneurial Leadership Program in the School of Business Administration.
Sparks, a three-day event held April 29-May 1 that centered on pitching new businesses, is intended to inspire and develop a new cohort of startups in the region. Organizing sponsors are Ignite Northwest and Limelyte Technology Group.
Leaders of Zaps, the winning team, are Siena Merrin, Hayley Mosby and Kate Sprague. Their $50,000 investment is subject to final due diligence and agreement on investment terms, expected to be finalized this summer.
“Our business, Zaps, is a way for students to mitigate their college expenses by utilizing their dining dollars when they pay each other back.”
For example, Mosby explained, a student might buy a friend a coffee using dining dollars, but the friend has no way to pay them back with the same currency. The only options for a refund are cash or Venmo – or no refund at all.
Sprague, a political science major from Longview, Washington, recalled the winning moment.
Gonzaga’s School of Business Administration is celebrating its centennial this year. U.S. News and World Report’s latest rankings list Gonzaga as No. 21 for Best Undergraduate Entrepreneurship Program.
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