On Friday, 30th August 2019, the Mayor of the City and County Of Limerick, Cllr Michael Sheahan, launched the Limerick Student Enterprise Programme on behalf of the Local Enterprise Office Limerick. The Student Enterprise Programme is an educational and fun-packed initiative that teaches second level students what it is really like to be an entrepreneur, and set up and run their own business over the course of the academic year.
The Mayor was joined by students from Ardscoil Mhuire,Corbally, Desmond College, Newcastlewest and Castletroy College,Limerick, in City Hall to mark the launch of the 2019/ 2020 Programme. These schools are just three of over twenty Limerick schools that participate in the programme each year, and over 1000 students under 18 participate in the programme across Limerick City and County every year.
Nationally, approximately 26,000 second level students from all over Ireland take part in the Student Enterprise Programme and gain real life experience about what it is like to be their own boss and how to run a business, thereby gaining invaluable experience about the ups and downs of entrepreneurship along the way!
The Programme compliments the business studies curriculum at both junior and senior level and is a rewarding experience for students, giving them the freedom to develop their business concepts to the fullest. Students can enter either individually or as part of a team.
Mayor Sheahan said he was “delighted to mark the start of the academic year with the launch of this great programme”. He wished all the students participating in the programme every success with their business ideas. He said he was “looking forward to seeing the fruits of their work at the County Final exhibition which will be held in the Southcourt Hotel on the 25th of March 2020”.
The programme is a Local Enterprise Office initiative, and Mary Killeen Fitzgerald, Acting Head of Enterprise with the L.E.O.,in Limerick, stated that “This programme plays a very important role in developing the students business skills, and helps foster a strong entrepreneurial culture in the participating students. We hope to see these students as clients of the Local Enterprise Office, launching new businesses in the near future”.
Garry Lowe of Whizzkids Training, who co-ordinates the programme on behalf of the Local Enterprise Office, and supports the students on their journey throughout the programme said “I am really looking forward to going into the schools in Limerick again this year and working with the students on their ideas. Over the coming months I will be delivering workshops on areas such as idea generation, market research, product development, branding, sales, advertising, presentation skills etc as the students progress through the process of starting their own business”.
