Teen entrepreneurs will represent South Dublin County at student enterprise finals
LOCAL Enterprise Office South Dublin have announced that teenage entrepreneurs from the South Dublin area will represent South Dublin at this year’s Student Enterprise Programme National Finals on Thursday, May 9.
The students all took part in the County Final last week which was held at the Maldron Hotel, Tallaght.
An estimated 1,795 students from 22 schools from around the County, took part in this year’s programme.
The enterprise education initiative, funded by the Government of Ireland through Enterprise Ireland and delivered by the 31 Local Enterprise Offices in local authorities throughout the country, saw over 25,000 students from just under 500 secondary schools across the country take part in 2022 / 2023.
The programme supports students to create, design and market their own business, all with the hope of reaching the National Finals.
In the Junior Category, the students representing South Dublin at the National Finals, SM Smelts, from Scoil Mochua, Clondalkin.
Moyle Park College with their project: Dragon Flame with Mayor Edge and councillor Charlie O’Connor. Photos by Lafayette
In the Intermediate Category, Blobs with Jobs, Loreto High School Beaufort will be representing the county at the Finals.
In the Senior Category of the competition, South Dublin will be represented by students from AI Study Buddy, from Greenhills Community College.
Other winners on the day were for Sales and Marketing: Movie Meal from Firhouse Educate Together Secondary School, the Social Media Winner was Dragon Flame from Moyle Park College, Clondalkin, the Innovation Award Winner went to Rhycon Trades from Rockbrook Park School, and the Best Display Winner went to Aroma & Co. from Sancta Maria College, Rathfarnham.
The Most Enterprising School of the Year Award went to Scoil Mochua, Clondalkin, and the Enterprising Teacher of the Year went to John Dineen from Firhouse Educate Together Secondary School.
Speaking at the county final, Tom Rooney of Local Enterprise Office South Dublin congratulated the students, saying: “We have a very successful student enterprise programme here in South Dublin County with over 1,795 students from 22 local schools taking part this year.
“Our national finalists are excellent ambassadors for the programme and we wish them the very best of luck on Thursday, May 9, and we will all hope to be there to support them.
“In what has been a particularly challenging couple of years for students the programme has offered them an outlet outside of the usual school demands.
“What our students are learning from the programme is that with the right supports and encouragement, they can take an idea from the classroom and develop it into a real-life business.
“The skills they learn along the way, such as business planning, market research, selling and team-work, will help them become more entrepreneurial throughout their future careers”.
The local students will be competing against hundreds of other student entrepreneurs from all over Ireland at the Student Enterprise Programme National Finals, taking place at the Mullingar Park Hotel on Thursday, May 9.
Learn more about LEO South Dublin HERE.
