BY ELOISE RAVELL

The Andrews University
Enactus Team will be attending the Enactus National Competition taking place
March 31–April 3 in Cincinnati, Ohio.

Enactus is an international nonprofit organization comprised of a community of
student, academic, and business leaders, who use entrepreneurial action to improve
the quality of life for people in need. There are currently Enactus teams
represented throughout 1,600 universities in 36 countries with 66,500 students
involved and more than 7,400,000 project volunteer hours completed.

“Enactus provides Andrews students with an amazing opportunity to take the
skills that we learn in the classroom and use them to better our community,”
says senior Jason Shockey, president of the Andrews Enactus Team. “The national
competition gives us the chance to present our projects to national leaders in
the world of business.”

The Andrews Enactus
Team is involved in roughly six community projects a year. This year, the
projects include running a recycling program on campus, conducting nutritional
classes for third graders at Ruth Murdoch Elementary School, helping with the
Berrien Springs High School Business Bash, conducting several food drives,
holding financial seminars for those in the community, and painting more than
200 faces at the Berrien Springs downtown “Kindle Your Christmas Spirit” event.

The Enactus national competition welcomes schools from across the country whose
students come to compete by presenting on the projects they have completed
throughout the year. The students present to a group of executives from more
than 400 companies around the U. S. such as Walmart, Sam’s Club, Hershey’s,
Johnson & Johnson, American Greetings and Wells Fargo.

Besides competing,
students will have the chance to connect with peers and attend a career fair.
Students will have the opportunity to talk with companies looking for Enactus
participants to work for them, hand out résumés and, in some cases, be
interviewed. These companies recognize Enactus students as ones who understand
the importance of community involvement, who have good time management skills
and who can work well under pressure.

“Enactus instills a passion in students for both the Enactus organization and
for becoming involved in the community that doesn’t stop once they graduate but
continues on throughout life,” says Jacquelyn Warwick, professor of marketing
and club sponsor, “Enactus students are more self-confident, have a stronger
résumé and are better prepared to enter the job market.”