Stanislaus State’s Warrior Entrepreneur and Innovation (WEI) Challenge brought students, faculty and community members together to celebrate creativity, collaboration and the drive to turn budding ideas into tangible business ventures.
The WEI Challenge, held in early December at the Warrior Steps in the University Student Center at the campus in Turlock, featured students from Stanislaus State, UC Merced and Modesto Junior College who pitched their business ideas in front of an audience that included local business leaders who served as judges during the competition.
Participants competed for three cash prizes and mentorship hours to help make their entrepreneurial visions a reality.
The WEI Challenge is part of Stan State’s Warrior Entrepreneur and Innovation Program, a multifaceted initiative established by a $250,000 gift from the Porges Family Foundation. The initiative was created to provide inspiration, mentorship and financial support to emerging entrepreneurs as they strive to turn their ideas and concepts into new business opportunities that can help grow the region’s economy.
First place and $2,000 went to UC Merced student Simao Gama for DormRush, an on-campus delivery system designed by students for students.
“I’m so happy to have just participated in the WEI Challenge. Never in my life did I think I’d even have $1,000 to my name, so winning $2,000 for an idea I’m so passionate about is an incredible feeling,” Gama said. “I made DormRush from just an idea into something I can actually use.”
May Nguyen, a nursing major at Modesto Junior College, earned second place and $1,000 for NurseReady, a consulting service simplifying the path to nursing programs.
Stan State computer science major Amelia Velazquez Valencia claimed third place and $500 for WanderBloom, a venture combining an Internet café, flower shop and community hub with a focus on sustainability.
For Velazquez Valencia, the project is deeply personal. “I spend a lot of time at the University Library, studying and participating in activities,” Velazquez Valencia said. “I thought, why not create a space like that in Modesto, where college and high school students can come together, work on something and have it open late?”
WanderBloom transforms a traditional space into a vibrant community hub, featuring yoga, sewing and photography workshops alongside a bookstore, bakery and boutique.
“The idea is to create a place where teens and young adults can learn, eat and feel inspired,” she said.
Velazquez Valencia, who found out about the program and WEI Challenge while browsing Stan State’s website, said participating in the competition was an exciting experience.
“I was nervous about my presentation being too long, but I was excited to share my vision for bringing something back to the Central Valley,” she said.
She highlighted her project’s focus on local resources, emphasizing fresh produce grown locally. The Central Valley is a vital region that produces about 25% of the nation’s food supply, including 40% of its fruits and nuts.
“The main selling point is that we’re using the Valley’s resources — almonds, fresh fruit and farm-to-table items — to nourish students while they work and grow,” she said.
While her idea placed third, Velazquez Valencia remains committed to bringing WanderBloom to life.
“It’s very personal to me, and I think we need more spaces like this for young people,” she said.
Other Stan State students brought innovative ideas to the competition. Vladimir Ramirez, a computer information systems major, presented Roots, a subscription service featuring locally sourced and specialty foods from the Modesto area. Jacqueline Hernandez, a business major, pitched NEO R, a concept for a flying car using magnetic levitation.
Jordain Johnson, a Stan State senior, introduced Synergy Studios, a gaming and animation company.
“I’ve been hearing great things about the WEI program and everything they’ve been doing,” Johnson said. “I found out about this competition through a friend, and I’m so excited to be here and give it my all. I’m stoked to be part of something this amazing.”
“This competition gives students a real taste of the professional world — what it’s like to network, strive and succeed. It’s an opportunity to experience what we’ll face after graduation and to prepare ourselves for the challenges ahead.”
College of Business Administration Dean Terence Pitre kicked off the evening by speaking about the event’s importance because it encourages students to pursue their ideas.
“When I think about this event and what it means, I'm reminded of the expression, ‘If you cannot envision the harvest, you will never plant the seed,’” Pitre said. “What we have tonight are people who have envisioned their harvest, and they are now planting their seeds.”
Special thanks went to the panel of judges, business leaders in the Central Valley and San Francisco Bay Area, for sharing their expertise and encouraging students:
• Shaun Holt, chairman and CEO of Alveo Technologies
• Larry Rivera, CEO and co-founder of Mango Crazy
• Lourdes Uranday, human resources consultant and vice president and chief financial officer of Consultrex Inc.
• Gehad Elhanafy, program associate at BEAM Circular
• AhnViet “Charlie” Nguyen, chief advocate at ChalkWild LLC
Pablo Paredes Romero, faculty fellow for the Warrior Entrepreneur and Innovation Program, highlighted the role of community in cultivating innovation.
“The most amazing ideas — groundbreaking procedures, the circular economy, bioeconomy, the printing press, the Internet, you name it — none of those things happened because of one person’s brilliant idea,” Paredes Romero said. “They happened in and with community.”
“I think that one of the things that people sleep on is the level of brilliance here, the ability to dream and to cogitate, to look forward and move together in the same direction,” Paredes Romero added, reflecting on the Central Valley’s potential and talent. ”
“Tonight is a celebration of the ability of our students and of the community that surrounds them to look toward that horizon and move in the direction.”
