Students Put Entrepreneurial Skills to the Test at Johnny’s Innovation Challenge

Students from St. John’s University and elsewhere gathered in St. Augustine Hall on the Queens, NY, campus to showcase their entrepreneurial instincts on Saturday, February 22, during the first-ever Johnny’s Innovation Challenge.

The competition, sponsored by faculty, administrators, and staff of The Lesley H. and William L. Collins College of Professional Studies (CCPS) and the University’s Venture & Innovation Center (VIC), in partnership with The School of Education, encouraged participants from all academic disciplines to develop and pitch ideas for sustainable business solutions or start-up enterprises.

Luca Iandoli, Ph.D., Dean, the Collins College of Professional Studies and Professor, Division of Computer Science, Mathematics, and Science, said the event encouraged young entrepreneurs to use skills acquired in the classroom to identify a viable solution to a global crisis.

“Johnny’s Innovation Challenge presents our students with an opportunity to express their creativity in innovation and entrepreneurship for the common good,” Dean Iandoli said. “As an ideation hackathon, it supports the development of ideas into an early product concept and prototype, while networking with sponsoring companies and organizations.”

Inspired by the opportunity, 59 students organized into 20 different teams registered for the event. Competitors were tasked with creating business ideas with sustainable global impact consistent with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. Adopted in 2015, the UN goals include economic development, eliminating poverty and hunger, improved access to education, action on climate issues, and more.

Student teams—including three from universities in France, Poland, and Puerto Rico—were evaluated by a panel of industry experts and St. John’s faculty. Team members also networked with mentors and sponsors to expand professional opportunities and open doors in their desired career fields.

Tanisha Guirand, a senior Finance major at The Peter J. Tobin College of Business, was excited to participate in the challenge, creating with her teammates a cleaning product that minimizes plastic waste. “The sense of competition, coupled with the goals of sustainability, really encouraged me to use my classroom knowledge to promote responsible consumerism in a financially feasible manner,” Tanisha said.

Tanisha’s teammate, Steiner Williams, a senior Management major at Tobin, said his Business Law class and other courses provided the inspiration to transform ideas into potential start-up companies. “This challenge also strengthened my problem-solving skills, pushing me to think about holistic solutions to global issues,” Steiner explained. “This will help me in my consulting career aspirations, whether in internships or future jobs.”

James M. Kinsley, M.B.A., Director of the VIC and Professor of Management, Entrepreneurship, Consulting, and Operations (MECO) at Tobin, explained how, through challenges such as this, the VIC helps students turn ideas into impactful ventures. “By helping to foster innovation, sustainable development, and small-business growth, the challenge aligns with our Vincentian mission—empowering students to create solutions that serve both the community and the greater good,” Mr. Kinsley said.

“Virtue for the Future,” or “Virture,” team members Daria Stepanova, who is pursuing a Master of Business Administration in Entrepreneurship, and Alpamys Yechshanov, a senior Graphic Design major, won the $750 prize from the Collins College of Professional Studies for their use of an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered sorting bin to remedy the issue of cross contamination of recycled items.

Daria said she has always been passionate about environmental sustainability. Johnny’s Innovation Challenge inspired her to “create real change in the world, leave a lasting impact, and feel satisfied in the hard work dedicated to this project, and in the classroom.”

Alpamys was similarly excited about the competition. He said much of his graphic design work, including class projects and internships, involves global sustainability.

“The AI trash bin product tackles a significant problem in our world—cross contamination—and this system can make a difference in the world,” he said. “I am grateful to St. John’s for giving me the tools to develop this model and the opportunity to showcase the team’s ingenuity.”

Senior Finance majors Prasoon Saha and Matthew Siegel, and Uday Kumar, who is pursuing an M.B.A. in Enterprise Risk Management, were part of the “Knothastags” team that won the $750 prize sponsored by the VIC, in partnership with The School of Education. Their business model, which supported small global and student businesses, and sustainable artistry, met a sustainability goal by promoting inclusive, equitable, and accessible education.

Additionally, the “Hot Stuff” team, comprised of three Environmental Science students—junior Spencer Collymore, sophomore Cara Dunleavy, and senior Niyadeng Tour—won the $750 prize and the Farella Vincentian Innovation Award, sponsored by Steven J. Farella ’77SVC, board Chairman of MyTelescope Inc. and board member of Sinecure.ai. The students were recognized for their dedication to the University’s Vincentian mission of ethical and community-focused service. Their business model proposed single-use cups mainly made from mycelium—commonly found in mushrooms—that self-decompose, reducing agricultural waste.

Radhika R. Jha, Associate Dean of Graduate Studies and Academic Engagement at CCPS, said resources at St. John’s, including the Innovation Challenge and the VIC, empower young innovators to develop solutions. The University supports them through mentorship and hands-on workshops, helping to transform their ideas into viable ventures. “I believe Johnny’s Innovation Challenge will serve as an entrepreneurial launchpad for our students, empowering them to develop innovative solutions aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals,” Ms. Jha said.

Along with the cash prizes, finalists have the opportunity to unlock spots in the VIC’s Incubation Program, where they can continue developing their sustainable business ideas through a summer stipend and funding to attend the European Innovation Academy’s summer program. Additionally, the winning team for the Collins College of Professional Studies prize, Virture, earned a spot in the Hult Prize's national competition at the Hult International Business School and the Museum of Science in Boston, MA, with an opportunity to advance to the finals in London, England, and win one million dollars.