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DSU SIFE Team Regional Champions 

The Dakota State University Students In Free Enterprise (SIFE) team was victorious in the regional SIFE Competition in Minneapolis March 31. The DSU group beat teams from the north central United States to claim the regional championship and advance to the national competition in Kansas City in May.

 SIFE is a service organization that encourages university students to perform community service, mainly in the areas of economics and business education. During the year, student teams complete projects that serve the community by educating people about economic and business issues and by supporting entrepreneurial activity.  The DSU SIFE team managed projects this academic year as diverse as encouraging new businesses to start in Madison, helping the homeless in Sioux Falls, teaching financial literacy to students of all ages, and discouraging piracy of intellectual property such as music.  The regional competition in Minneapolis consisted of presentations that described the projects and their impact on the community. 

 The victorious presentation team consisted of DSU students Dave Wiederich, Brandon Nase, Jesse Erdman, Travis Krueger, Noah Sanderson, and Steve Woltjer. They were supported by Heather Rogers, Chris Raymond, and Kyle Stoebner. The annual report was principally written by Jen Sanderson. SIFE team members Lisa Reuland, Melissa Gates, and Jodi Benson also attended the conference.  SIFE’s faculty advisor is Jack Walter.

 Along with being named regional champions, DSU’s SIFE team was named Rookie of the Year. This is the first year SIFE has been an official student organization at Dakota State University.

 Students In Free Enterprise is a global organization operating on five continents. It supports education about market economics and entrepreneurship. SIFE is sponsored by about 200 of the world’s leading corporations, who donate money and executives’ time so that students can afford to participate in activities and travel to conferences. Many of these corporations also use their contacts with outstanding SIFE team members as opportunities to recruit graduates for career employment.