News Article

College of the North Atlantic (CNA) had a strong presence at the Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) National Exposition which took place May 7-9 in Calgary. The competition involved three rounds with 50 teams, four of which came from CNA.
 
Of the 10 Spirit of SIFE awards handed out from the first round of competition, CNA teams took home three for Bay St. George, Clarenville, and Grand Falls-Windsor campuses.
 
The St. John’s team advanced from the first round of competition into the semi-finals proving themselves to be among the top 20 teams in the country. It was here they competed against the University of Windsor, Acadia University and Ryerson University. St. John’s lost out to Ryerson during this round. Ryerson later came in as the runner-up to the eventual winner, SIFE Memorial, in the finals.
 
Dwight Hutchens, the faculty advisor for St. John’s campus SIFE team, says the team did great.
 
“SIFE St. John’s presented very well in both rounds and rocked the Q&A from the judges both times,” he says. “It was a real pleasure to watch our students perform well and be recognized by the judges.”
 
Hutchens describes SIFE as an amazing program which allows students to gain significant exposure and experience in the community. 
 
“The true benefits gained from being involved with a SIFE team are not really something that can be obtained in a classroom. More importantly, their involvement in SIFE allows students to build self-confidence and take advantage of networking opportunities within the business community.”
 
The nine-person St. John’s team was comprised of Katrina O’Keefe of Ferryland, Dave Powell of Mount Pearl, Terri Reid of Conception Bay South, Chris Clarke of Botwood, Emily Warren of Torbay, Jenessa O’Toole of St. John’s, Kenneth Brain of Grand Falls-Windsor, Jacelle Somerton of St. John’s and Katie Lucin of Vancouver, BC.
 
The Bay St. George (Stephenville) SIFE team was the smallest sent by CNA, consisting of Amy Erickson from Port au Port and Nancy Nelma from Flat Bay.  Lynda Burt, the faculty advisor, says they were delighted to take home a Spirit of SIFE award.
 
“I am very proud of our team,” says Burt. “Although only a tiny team of two, the Bay St. George SIFE team proudly represented themselves and brought home a Spirit of SIFE Award. The other 50 teams consisted of eight to 60 members so for our team to even compete at this level among the most prestigious universities and colleges across the country, this in itself was a courageous and amazing accomplishment.”
 
The Grand Falls-Windsor SIFE team was honoured to take home a Spirit of SIFE Award. The seven-member team consisted of Kevin Oberholster and Jennifer Chaffey of Lewisporte, and Jeremy Reid, Sarah Thorne, Kim Necho and Ashley Bounds of Grand Falls-Windsor.
 
“Through SIFE possibilities are endless,” says Faculty Advisor Susanne Ivey. “We have met amazing business leaders throughout Canada and have had the opportunity to meet the future leaders of tomorrow.  Tomorrow’s future depends on today’s productivity.”
 
Clarenville SIFE team Faculty Advisor Paul Tilley says that all of the teams sent by CNA proved themselves to be at the same level as the other universities and college across the country.
 
“Our group took in several presentations from other schools from across Canada - ours was as good as and sometimes better than any! Memorial's projects and presentations are the standard on which all others are judged. The proliferation of SIFE NL awards and with SIFE Memorial once again coming out as the winner clearly indicates that we have arrived - and our students, the next generation of business leaders, know that! The rest of us should know that as well.”


Tilley adds that the experience is invaluable for students at CNA.

“Personally, I find this and any such event that allows our students to see more and do more things than they would otherwise have an opportunity to see and do, rewarding. This comes with a cost. These opportunities don't simply happen - they come with a tremendous amount of time, effort and commitment from students and their mentors. These sorts of things put everyone outside of their comfort zone. But isn't that when real learning happens?”
 
Clarenville SIFE included Nathan Vey of Hillview, Krista Skiffington of Musgravetown, Beaton Winsor, Olivia Best and Sherry Smith of Clarenville, Gorvin Greening of Jamestown, Sherrell Penney of Lethbridge and Debbie Strong of George’s Brook.
 
Tilley credits Faculty Advisor Deidra Stowbridge for her dedication to the team.
 
“Deidra was the power, taskmaster and organizer behind this team considering the number of hours she put into this. Our team owes its efforts to her.”
 
St. Johns and Clarenville had claimed top prizes this year in the Capital One SIFE Financial Education Regional Challenge held in Halifax in March. This distinction allowed both teams to compete in the final round of topic competition at the national competition. However, it was Ryerson University that was named national champs for the competition.
 
Finally, SIFE Clarenville was rewarded with second place on the Urgent Hunger Relief category for their Let’s Can Hunger – Immediate and Long-term Hunger Relief initiative. The project addresses the challenges faced by families experiencing financial difficulties due to major housing shortages, skyrocketing rental and housing costs, and an overall increase in the cost of living due to major projects such as the Hebron Project at Bull Arm, North Atlantic Refinery’s re-development, and VALE’s nickel hydromet processing facility in Long Harbour. Their work increased understanding of hunger awareness in their community, impacted over 4,000 people and helped raise over 10,000 pounds of food.
 
 
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Media Contact:
 
Glenda McCarthy
Public Relations Assistant
College of the North Atlantic
709.643.6408
glenda.mccarthy@cna.nl.ca