Two of our sponsors are interested in
supporting specific needs of students participating in the
John Ruffatto Business Plan Competition. All teams that
competed in the John Ruffatto Business Plan Competition on
May 8, 2008 are eligible for two additional prizes that were
not awarded during the competition.
If you or your team are indeed pursuing the business
opportunity that you presented at the competition and are
interested in applying for either of these awards we
encourage you to do so.
Please read this document carefully to determine your
eligibility and to make sure that you application follows
the instructions.
Huse Law Legal Assistance Fund
Huse Law Office, P.C. donated legal
services valued at up to $2,000 (based on normal hourly
rates provided by the attorney(s) providing services).
These legal services are to be used by student teams
who meet the following criteria:
·
The team
must have presented their plan at the John Ruffatto Business
Plan Competition on May 8, 2008
·
The team
must be actively pursuing the business referenced in their
business plan or a business that is substantially similar to
said business.
·
The team
can use the award for legal services related directly to the
proposed business.
This would include but is not limited to filing for
LLC, C-Corp, S-Corp, or Partnership status (including filing
of Articles of Incorporation or Organization and preparing
and filing of specific tax-related documents) preparation of
contracts, etc.
·
Determination of the appropriate for business use of this
award shall be made at the discretion of Huse Law
Ken and Carol Thuerbach New
Venture Stimulus Fund
Ken and
Carol Thuerbach will contribute $2,500 per year into a fund
aimed to support entrepreneurial students in their efforts
to launch businesses presented or to be presented at the
John Ruffatto Business Plan Competition.
The following are guidelines for this fund:
1.
Eligibility - Students currently attending or who have
attended a college or university in the state of Montana
within the past 2 academic years who:
a.
Have participated or are participating in entrepreneurship education
courses
b.
Have a business idea that is considered a High Growth Potential business
by the John Ruffatto Business Plan Competition Guidelines
and complies with all additional rules for the John Ruffatto
Business Plan Competition
c.
In addition to a and b above, students must meet one of the following
two criteria:
i.
Students must have competed in the John Ruffatto Business Plan
Competition and Placed in the top 3 within the High Growth
Potential Division or who were selected to compete in the
Wildcard Round of the competition
ii.
Or Student must have strong intentions to compete in the John Ruffatto
Business Plan Competition within the next calendar year and
have strong intentions of launching their business as
indicated by letters of support from entrepreneurship
faculty. Such letters should clearly describe the level of
student commitment to launch the business.
2.
Funds are available for:
a.
Travel to conduct further research on the business opportunity
b.
Registration fees for attending a relevant industry trade show
c.
Other activities directly aimed at advancing a student’s preparation for
launching a new business venture
3.
Application process
a.
Students must submit:
i.
A maximum two-page single-spaced memo addressed to the Director of the
John Ruffatto Business Plan Competition that clearly
describes:
1.
Description of the travel, research, or other activity that funds will
be used for
2.
Proposed budget (also indicating student’s own contribution to pursuing
the travel, research, or activity)
3.
Expected outcomes
ii.
All submissions are to be sent to the Director of the John Ruffatto
Business Plan Competition
iii.
Submissions must provide ample time for review and distribution of funds
4.
Review process
a.
Submissions will be reviewed by the Director of the John Ruffatto
Business Plan Competition and any member of the Montana
Academy of Distinguished Entrepreneurs (MADE).
The Director (and MADE member(s) shall make the
decision to grant funding and send notification to Ken and
Carol Thuerbach indicating the basis for funding the
request.
b.
Reviews will be done in a timely manner
c.
Notification will be made to the individual submitting a request by the
Director of the John Ruffatto Business Plan Competition
5.
Follow-up
a.
Recipients are required to submit a follow-up memo to the reviewers
noted above that describes the travel, research, or activity
and the outcomes
6.
Administration of the Fund
a.
The fund shall be administered by the Director of the John Ruffatto
Business Plan Competition and the School of Business
Administration at the University of Montana
b.
In the event that no money or only a portion of the money is disbursed
in a particular year, the balance shall remain in the
account and supplemented by Ken and Carol Thuerbach the
following year with an additional $2,500.
c.
Ken and Carol Thuerbach reserve the right, after discussion with the
Director of the John Ruffatto Business Plan Competition, to
make adjustments to these guidelines to better meet the
needs of the competition or the entrepreneurship program at
the University of Montana
For a Word document copy of these
criteria please contact Dr. Jeff Shay at
jshay@business.umt.edu
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