NAIT RATV students make finals for the Mawji Innovation Challenge

For the first time in its five-year history, NAIT Radio and Television students make it to the finals for the Mawji Centre’s Innovation Challenge. This year’s challenge is how to make life more affordable for students.

E-Media is comprised of first-year RATV students Adrian Amon, Clayton Foisy, Kelsey Kliparchuk and Jeremy Russo. Their idea is to bring a thrift store directly onto campus with all profits going directly to NAITSA programs. Rather than reinventing a new system, they decided that putting more profit into preexisting services had a greater impact on students’ financial wellness.

Many colleges and universities across the country have hopped on the thrifting trend for environmental and economic reasons. This could be Alberta’s first permanent on-campus thrift store, as U of A hosts a seasonal pop-up called Thriftology.

The challenge requires teams to design and create a three-minute video pitching their idea. The top five submissions then make it to the finals. Of those five, three will split the cash prizes totaling $3,000:
– First place: $1,500
– Second place: $1,000
– Third place: $500

Previous finalists and winners of the Innovation Challenge have mainly been from NAIT engineering programs and the JR Shaw School of Business, making the RATV submission stand out in the competition.

“For me, it’s not about winning. It’s about going the distance against the odds,” Adrian Amon says. If he wins, “I plan on paying off my credit card,” which many students can relate to.

Winners will be announced on March 19th from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. at NAIT’s Feltham Centre (CAT Building).

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