Competition News
Spring 2026 Bernstein Competition
Spotter Wins 2026 SU Bernstein Business Plan Competition
Friday May 12, 2026
SALISBURY, MD---Fitness enthusiasts may be one step closer to having a personal trainer in their pocket thanks to Spotter, the corrective exercise virtual training app that earned the top prize in Salisbury University’s annual Bernstein Business Plan Competition.
Sarah Kyle, SU junior finance major, and Kevin Kyle, University of Maryland, College Park junior, of Cambridge, MD, earned the $15,000 Richard A. Bernstein Achievement Award for Excellence, named in honor of the competitions’ founder and sponsored by LWRC International.
Read more about the Spring 2026 Bernstein Competition Winners
Spring 2026 Idea Factory Competition
Spring Idea Factory Entrepreneurship Competition Winners Announced
Friday May 8, 2026
SALISBURY, MD---Families could one day have a non-traditional therapy option combining mind, body, and spirit through Stable Minds, the top business pitch in Salisbury University’s spring 2026 student Idea Factory Competition.
Senior business management major Mary Fogle of Berlin, MD, earned the $5,000 first place award for her plan to provide accessible, nature-based mental health support, merging equine therapy instruction and counseling.
Read more about the Spring 2026 Idea Factory Competition Winners
Fall 2025 Competition
Fall Idea Factory Entrepreneurship Competition Winners Announced
Monday November 24, 2025
SALISBURY, MD---Teachers, tutors, and parents may soon have an easier solution to test preparation thanks to, MathBridge, the top business pitch in Salisbury University’s fall 2025 student Idea Factory Competition.
M.B.A. student Leah Osmon of Salisbury earned a $4,000 total prize package for her SAT/ATC prep company idea, which would offer real-world applications to save teachers time while instilling the value and relevance of math to students. It included the $3,000 first place award and the $1,000 Salisbury-Wicomico Economic Development award.
2025 Competition
SU Announces 2025 Student Entrepreneurship Competition Winners
Friday May 16, 2025
SALISBURY, MD---Salisbury fan-favorite band Housing Co. proved its recording studio and business, 2 Months Records LLC, is just as much a viral sensation after taking home the top prize in Salisbury University’s 39th annual Student Entrepreneurship Competitions.
Seniors Ethan Cohen, of Ocean City, MD; Connor Howes, of Havre de Grace, MD; Connor Lewandowski, of Elkton, MD; and alumnus Trey Niccolini ‘24 earned an $18,000 total prize package. It included the $15,000 Richard A. Bernstein Achievement Award for Excellence, named in honor of the competitions’ founder and sponsored by LWRC International; and the $3,000 City of Salisbury award.
2024 Competition
2024 Student Entrepreneurship Competition Winners
Senior computer science major Sean Berndlmaier navigated his way to the top during Salisbury University’s 37th annual student Entrepreneurship Competitions.
His business plan, IndoorNav Pro, earned a $19,125 total prize package. It included the $15,000 Richard A. Bernstein Achievement Award for Excellence, named in honor of the competition’s founder and sponsored by LWRC International and Rommel Chesapeake; the M&T Bank-sponsored $2,500 first place in the second round of the competition’s “Gull Cage” Shark Tank-style elevator pitch to local business leaders; the $625 Concept Conqueror Award for best prototype, sponsored by SU’s Dave and Patsy Rommel Center for Entrepreneurship; and $1,000 from the competition’s initial “Invest in My Idea” round.
IndoorNav Pro is a mapping solutions provider that will use blueprints, floor plans and building plan digital integration to help guests navigate public spaces such as college campuses, shopping malls, athletic venues, convention centers and more.
2023 Competition
2023 Student Entrepreneurship Competition Winners
SALISBURY, MD---For the second time in 36 years, tacos won the day at Salisbury University’s annual student Entrepreneurship Competitions.
On the eve of Cinco de Mayo, judges voted the student business plan for Tacos Del Mar, a Mexican-inspired catering company, as the best out of 59 entries in the 2023 contest — the most in SU history.
The proposal echoed one of the competition’s earliest winners, Peter Engler, whose entry in 1989 led to the establishment of Nacho Pete’s a popular fast-casual Mexican restaurant in Salisbury in the 1990s.
2022 Competition
2022 Student Entrepreneurship Competition Winners
SALISBURY, MD---When junior art major Carleigh Stokes moved from Elkridge, MD, to the Eastern Shore to attend Salisbury University in 2019, she decided to use her proximity to the beach resort of Ocean City, MD, to pursue a new hobby: surfing.
She could not have imagined then that her passion for catching waves would result in her winning more than $19,500 in cash and prizes during Salisbury University’s annual Franklin P. Perdue School of Business Entrepreneurship Competitions for SU students, sponsored by M&T Bank.
2021 Competition
2021 Student Entrepreneurship Competition Winners
SALISBURY, MD---On the Delmarva Peninsula, boat owners are a huge clientele base.
Salisbury University marketing major Johnathan Howell of Berlin, MD, has already begun delving into that market with his Ocean City, MD-based business Howell’s Dockside Services, specializing in boat detailing and preparation, including bottom painting and winter preparation.
As this year’s winner of the $15,000 Bernstein Achievement Award for Excellence, bestowed during the 34th annual Franklin P. Perdue School of Business Entrepreneurship Competitions for SU students, he will be able to expand his company with a new vehicle and equipment.
2020 Competition
SU Entrepreneurship Events Go Virtual
Salisbury University’s Franklin P. Perdue School of Business hosted its annual Student Entrepreneurship Competitions for students Friday, May 8, 2020 via Zoom.
Events included an “Invest in My Idea” poster and 1-minute prerecorded pitch session and a Shark Tank/Gull Cage round, during which students present “elevator” pitches to the judges via Zoom.
The top four finalists move on to the annual Bernstein Achievement Award for Excellence competition, vying for a grand prize.
2019 Competition
Cameron Kane: Making gaming accessible to those with hearing impairments
$20,000 Bernstein Achievement Award for Excellence
Cameron Kane is an avid gamer, computer science major and undergraduate researcher from Salisbury University. Over the past year, he has been working on ways to improve the accessibility of the gaming experience, focusing first on audio. So far, Kane has conducted University grant-funded research and founded a new startup, Valkyrie Software Solutions, LLC, in the pursuit of making Universal Design features commonplace in the videogame Industry. In 2019, his business received the top prize the Bernstein Achievement Award of Excellence, taking home $21,000 in cash, awards and services. Kane works as an entrepreneurship consultant in the Hub and is a great resource for navigating who and where to go to for IP, business plan advice, technology assistance, research resources and general startup assistance.