New Dorp Freshman Wins YEA! Investor Panel
On Tuesday, April 9, the Staten Island Chamber of Commerce hosted the 2024 Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!) Investor Panel. The event, hosted at the Hilton's Tea House Garden Room, was the conclusion of the 2024 YEA! class, in which 18 students presented their business ideas to a panel of investors. Following their presentations, students had the opportunity to win funding to support the launch of their businesses.
New Dorp High School Freshman Katherine Antonov, whose business Kathos creates homemade granola bars, won first place. Staten Island Technical High School Junior Aaron Ye was awarded second place for Yetree, which produces high-quality and aesthetically-pleasing speakers. Finally, Staten Island Academy Junior Brian Chan was awarded third place for House of Poetry, an international creative writing magazine.
The three semi-finalists will proceed to The 2024 YEA! Saunders Scholars National Competition & 20th Anniversary Grand Gala Celebration in Rochester, New York, which scheduled for May 1 through May 4, 2024.
The complete list of awardees, with their program mentors:
First Place: Katherine Antonov, New Dorp HS, 9th Grade. Mentor: Roosevelt Board, Chick-fil-A Staten Island Mall
Second Place: Aaron Ye, Staten Island Technical HS, 11th Grade. Mentor: Ed Wiseman, Moving Pictures Inc.
Third Place: Brian Chan, Staten Island Academy, 11th Grade. Mentor: Omari DeJesus, NYC Arts Cypher, Inc.
Fourth Place: Azraf Hossain, Staten Island Technical HS, 9th Grade. Mentor: James Doyle, AGL Visuals
Fifth Place: Guadalupe Tenantitla, Gaynor McCown Expeditionary Learning School, 10th Grade. Mentor: Genesis Gonzalez, ReNu Wellness
The event was emceed by Roosevelt Board, Owner & Operator of Chick-Fil-A, Staten Island Mall. Judges included Joshua Rivera (Con Edison), Laurie Giunta (Northfield Bank), Edward Piszko (The SBDC at CSI), Monica Holowacz (Broadway Stages), Kamilah Briscoe (Staten Island Academy), John R. Merlino Jr. (Merlino & Gonzalez), Nisha Tumber (Person Centered Care Services), Kashif Pervez (Rotary Club of Staten Island), and Michael Sanicola (Amazon).
Con Edison served as the YEA! program’s Signature Sponsor. Amazon, Broadway Stages, Corient, The Lois and Richard Nicotra Foundation, Merlino & Gonzalez, National Grid, Northfield Bank, Person Centered Care Services, Staten Island Academy, The Rotary Club of Staten Island, and the Small Business Development Center at CSI served as Investor Panel Sponsors. Avid Architecture, Bell Law Group, Chick-fil-A, Dome Property Management, The Rab Wilkinson Foundation, and the South Shore Rotary served as Scholarship Sponsors.
