CSU, Chico News

Student teams from the Philippines, Tajikistan and China won first, second and third place, respectively, at the second Students for the Advancement of Global Entrepreneurship (SAGE) World Cup, an event coordinated by California State University, Chico business students.

The SAGE World Cup is a competition based on entrepreneurship and community service for high school students. The event took place at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco Airport in Burlingame on Friday, May 21.

The U.S. entrant, Sacramento High School of Business, tied for fourth with the team from Poland. Other teams competing included Mexico and South Africa.

SAGE is a nonprofit organization active in 100 high schools in 12 countries. Throughout the school year, SAGE teams develop and implement entrepreneurial programs in their communities, grounded on the importance of community service, civic engagement and environmental awareness. At competition, teams are rated on their demonstration of these skills.

SAGE founder and director Curtis DeBerg, accounting professor at CSU, Chico, said, “Another unique part of this program links high school students to nearby university students, who become their business consultants and coaches. When they showcase their projects to judges, each high school SAGE team is placed into a competitive league, comparable to athletic events.”

The teams excelled at creativity and marketing. The champion team from the Central Philippines University Development High School, located in Iloilo City on the island of Panay, created new markets for the Aetas ethnic group. The three-member presentation team of Michele Araneta, Julie Canete and Felcyd Dusaban explained how they helped the Aeta women identify and market their specialty handicrafts. They also aided the Aeta men to produce cooking stoves that are highly efficient and environmentally friendly.

The Tajikistan team from School #14-Kayrakkum City placed second. One of their projects was called “Parrots,” where students started a business of breeding and selling “wavy parrots,” which the students recognized were in demand because of their bright green and orange colors. The business is currently earning $25 profit per month. “Those of us in the U.S. may think of $25 as one trip to the ATM, but in Tajikistan this is 25 percent of the annual per capita gross domestic product,” DeBerg said.

“We had to overcome many difficulties, but we realized that we could implement our projects owing to insistence and patience. The SAGE program is wonderful, because it allows us to showcase the talent and creativity of the young generation in Tajikistan,” said Dilbarkhon Madzhidova, faculty adviser to the Tajikistan team.

The China team was represented by Kongjiang Senior High School in Shanghai, which sent a delegation of 15 students and advisers to San Francisco. “I am amazed at this team. They completed entrepreneurship projects such as selling flowers over the Internet and teaching younger students how to invest in the stock market,” said Rick Hubbard, software engineering adviser and one of the judges. Hubbard added, “These children represent the promise of the offspring of the generation from the Cultural Revolution.”

Lili Qu, a college student from the Shanghai School of Science and Technology, and business adviser for the China team, said, “We have learned things that we wouldn’t be taught in the classroom. Putting ourselves into real-world practice provides us a good opportunity to learn better about business, people and society. Thanks to SAGE, we are able to taste the fruits of our first business, while creating values and learning the importance of giving back to society.”

The Sacramento High School of Business team representing the United States was under the direction of CSU, Chico business students who are part of an organization called Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE). The Sacramento students presented their projects in a statewide competition in Chico on March 27 and topped a field of 16 California high schools.

The high school students were evaluated by a panel of 42 business, civic and education leaders from the Silicon Valley, Los Angeles, China, Chile, Argentina and South Africa. Some of the businesses sending representatives to judge the projects include the Allstate Foundation, State Farm, Pepsi Bottling Group, Merrill Lynch, E & J Gallo Winery, Steltzner Vineyards, Petco, Finish Line, BioForm Medical, Inc. and SAP.

“The SAGE program is paving the way for the next phase of our global economy, bringing together business and education leaders to promote socially responsible entrepreneurship,” said Carlos Alfaro, vice president of the Quality and Productivity Commission for the city of Los Angeles, who helped judge the event. “Being a judge has been a terrific experience for me. I would like to see more countries from Latin America involved.”

Diana Grippo, a teacher at Menlo-Atherton High School Business Academy and formerly with Intel Corporation, also judged the event and plans to start a SAGE chapter at her school next year. “SAGE is going to change education by engaging the business community as well as the postsecondary education community,” she said. “As a teacher with a business background, I know this is the direction public education needs to go.”

SAGE teams from Russia, Ukraine and Kazakhstan also participated this year, but were unable to send teams due to difficulties obtaining visas. According to DeBerg, other countries plan to start SAGE teams next year. “I’ve had inquiries from Chile, Kyrgyzstan, El Salvador, Brazil, Jamaica, Egypt and Uzbekistan,” he said.

The Third Annual SAGE World Cup is set for August 14-16, 2005, at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco Airport. For more information about SAGE, call 530-898-4824, or visit www.csuchico.edu/sage.

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This entry was posted on Tuesday, April 6th, 2004 at 8:30 am and is filed under 2004 Spring.