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Shark Tank Winners Brace Alert

Spring Lake Park High School juniors and seniors pitched their business ideas “Shark Tank style” to a panel of judges – gaining valuable insights and feedback from industry experts. Five finalist groups presented before winter break to an audience of peers, teachers, family members and “the sharks.”

The energy in the room is palpable as students present their ideas for new business products and services to a panel of industry leaders. They are apps for personal finance, pants that charge your electronic devices, innovative school lunch plans and jazzed up picnic blankets. Behind the scenes, they have been preparing for this moment since the beginning of the school year.

The class is Marketing and Entrepreneurship, a year-long class where students earn a full-year of elective business credit and their required English Language Arts credit with an option to pursue three college communications credits. The class operates in a double-block to allow flexibility so students can engage in company projects, travel to local businesses, and participate in field experiences.

This Shark Tank-style competition is the culmination of their learning at the end of the first trimester. It’s a milestone moment, but it’s not the end. This first big experience provides a foundation for learning for the rest of the year.

Real-world learning

Whether working individually or as a pair, students are tasked with the challenge of developing their business idea, product or service and figuring out how to market it. The learning culminates in the Shark Tank-like competition. The process involves research and development to determine what differentiates their idea in the marketplace.

The ideas they land on may vary, but the students follow a similar path in their learning journey. They will likely encounter unexpected roadblocks to overcome and may even change their idea altogether.

Sophie and Logan were finalists with their service “Party Link,” which is a subscription mobile app that aligns schedules and meeting places on a digital calendar for friend groups.

“We went in with no expectation to make the final,” says Sophie. “During the process, we switched ideas three times! At first, we started with products: things like a glucose monitor and a whisk for baking. Eventually we landed with this mobile app service, so completely different from where we started.”

When asked their favorite part of the class so far, Sophie and Logan both agree it is “the trial and error” of the learning process.

This is all part of the intended learning outcomes for students. Teacher Sarah Welken has witnessed this growth firsthand in her classroom.

“At the beginning of the trimester a lot of them are very nervous, which is natural,” says Sarah. “But as time goes on, they get more confident in what they are doing and what they are saying.”

Winning ideas, experience

The panel of five judges, who are all prominent business leaders in the community, had a tough decision to make when announcing the winner. They ultimately made the unanimous decision to award the top prize to “Brace Alert,” an invention by juniors Jaelyn Comer and Brianna Vandewiele.

“Brace Alert” is a safety and security bracelet that can send distress signals if the wearer is in danger. The technology can then track the individual and send help.

“Everyone else had such great presentations and ideas. We didn’t know what the outcome would be, but we felt confident and we were excited to win,” says Jaelyn. “Making the finals, we spent a lot of time and effort working on it, going over a lot of extra details and practicing.”

Shark Tank Finalists stand in front of the judges for their presentation

 “Brace Alert” was one of many brand new ideas students explored in their projects. Students Renelle and Keyara developed their idea for a weekly subscription school lunch plan with food grown from a community garden.

"Our weekly subscription school lunch plan will provide a solution to growing our own food and knowing where our nourishment comes from,” says Renelle. “Hearing from the sharks was valuable because they asked clarifying questions that we had to back up with answers or solutions. We altered our financials by the hour based on their advice! We are considering doing business in college and may want to have businesses of our own someday."

Yuj developed “Pic It,” a backpack and blanket combination product for easy picnicking.

“The sharks gave me a lot of positive feedback,” says Yuj. “They commented on how thorough the financials are and the personality and humor that I brought to the presentation. Though I presented my project solo, one of my favorite parts of this was listening and talking with others during class. I got a lot of good ideas from classmates about their approach."

Finalists Michael and Joel pitched “Clever Cash” to the judges, a banking mobile app that consolidates all financial institutions into one place.

"We are really proud of how our presentation looked and how it came together,” says Michael. “We worked as a team to design the graphics with our own custom logo and made the mock-ups of how the app would function on a phone. It really came to life and looks and feels like a real product. This class doesn't seem like schoolwork because we've actually enjoyed the process of developing our business."

“What they take away from this Shark Tank experience sets the tone for the rest of the year, and gives them a boost of confidence,” says Sarah.

Learn more in this feature on North Metro TV story and view the photo album.

Business & Entrepreneurship Pathway - Shark Tank 2022