UCC students transform €280 seed capital into €16,800 return
UCC students presenting their cheque to Penny Dinners' Caitríona Twomey, after raising nearly €17,000 for charity through the college's '€5 challenge'.
Second year students from the BComm programme at Cork University Business School at University College Cork generated €16,800 for charity after taking part in a '€5 challenge' organised by Programme Directors, Dr Lawrence Dooley and Dr Rosemary Murphy.
As part of the challenge, Dr Dooley invited students to invest just a fiver into creative ideas that will generate financial return on the initial investment.
In all, 56 teams from the BComm programme took part in the challenge, each investing five euros, amounting to a total seed capital of €280.
The students then organised revenue raising ventures such as pop-up grind schools, mystery tours and car washes. The most successful team, headed up by Peter Kelleher, raised €2,400.
"The concept behind the challenge is brilliant. We needed to come up with an idea relatively quickly and put in place a plan that would allow us to raise as much money as possible," explains Peter. "We had wonderful support from our lecturers who were more than happy to point us in the right direction so that we could maximise our contribution to Cork Penny Dinners and UNICEF."
The altruistic nature of the challenge also spoke to Alix Carey, who recognised the positive impact the challenge could have, particularly in light of current events.
"Cork Penny Dinners are such an incredible organisation. The work that they have been doing here in Cork is really inspiring," says Alix.
"You only have to look at how quickly they were able to work with other organisations to manage and deliver a convoy of aid to Ukraine recently. To be able to contribute to their efforts in any way is a privilege, so to be able to raise this amount of money as part of a fun challenge is a real source of pride for all of us."
Speaking after Dr Dooley presented her with a cheque on behalf of the students, Caitriona Twomey of Cork Penny Dinners praised the entrepreneurial initiative shown by students, thanked them for their efforts and described how the funds will be put to good use;
"I’d like to thank Dr Lawrence Dooley, Dr Rose Murphy and all the students from the BComm programme that took part in the challenge and raised much-needed funds for Cork Penny Dinners. Everyone involved in the programme has been extremely supportive of Cork Penny Dinners over the years and we really appreciate all their efforts.
"At the moment, we’re serving up to 2,000 freshly made meals per week to help those in struggle and in need. The money the students raised will help us to continue to provide a warm, dry place in the heart of Cork City where a hot nourishing meal and a friendly smile are offered without any questions or judgements."
For Dr Dooley, the €5 challenge reflects Cork University Business School’s ambition to create a generation of responsible business leaders, who will innovate to maximise the triple bottom line of people, planet, and profit.
"For over a century, the BComm programme has been producing graduates that really understand how business can play a leading role in shaping society," Dr Dooley shares. "Among our many illustrious alumni are business leaders who are at the forefront of organisations that are striving to promote sustainable change across all aspects of society."
"The €5 challenge encourages students to think about how they can deploy the business skills that they have been developing in their programme to an environment where they have an opportunity to make a real difference.
"Ultimately, employers really value people who are action-orientated and can apply their knowledge in this way, and this experiential learning gives our graduates a head start when they go out into a highly competitive jobs market."
This ambition chimes with the objective of the BComm programme, which is to produce graduates who can contribute immediately to business and the wider community.
To learn more about the BComm programme, visit the CUBS website and look out for the BComm convention, which will be launched on Wednesday, April 6th.
