International student wins inaugural Southern Cross Entrepreneurs seed grant

The seed grant - received from donations to the Southern Cross Entrepreneurs Fund from staff at Southern Cross - was awarded to Ms Chuyun Fang on Thursday May 31 at the SPARK Live Pitch. Chuyun and her startup team pitched a youth entrepreneurship and microfinancing platform to address youth employment in the Clarence Valley.

Chuyun will use her prize to attend StartCon 2018, the largest startup and growth conference in Australia, in November.

"I believe that it will not only expand my horizons but also help achieve my entrepreneurial potential," Chuyun said.

"It can provide me the exclusive opportunity to learn how to set up a project and to collaborate with team members. In this event, the creative tools and inspirational mentors will really help me build my strategic investor network, think outside the box and accelerate my deal flow."

SPARK Live Pitch was the culmination of a six-week Ideation Program offered through the Southern Cross Enterprise Lab, based at the Lismore campus. The seed grant prize was available to Southern Cross students participating in the Ideation Program. Students were asked to apply with an expression of interest and to nominate the event or workshop which fulfilled their professional aspirations.

Chuyun, who is studying a Master of Professional Accounting at Southern Cross University’s Gold Coast campus, travelled to the Lismore campus each week to meet with her startup team.

Pro Vice Chancellor of Engagement, Ben Roche, said he was thrilled to present Chuyun with the award.

“Chuyun embodies the resilience and determination that entrepreneurs must adopt to bring their ideas to fruition. Through the Southern Cross Student Opportunity fund, we can provide bright sparks like Chuyun with the support, resources and community required to further develop impact driven solutions.

“The Southern Cross Enterprise Lab is dedicated to building the entrepreneurial capacity of the Northern Rivers region and we look forward continuing our support for our Ideation teams.”