Enterprising students go for national glory
IT MAY seem a little early to be thinking of trips to Croke Park and of returning home from HQ with silverware, but for five students from Wexford the big date in the capital comes on May 3 and the final of the National Student Enterprise Awards.
JACK CULLEN (JACK’S CLASS GLASS)
JUNIOR CATEGORY WINNER - COLAISTE ABBAIN
When it came to selecting his business idea for the Student Enterprise Programme, Jack Cullen didn’t have far to look for inspiration. Blessed with his father’s skills in craft and design, the young first-year student at Colaiste Abbain, who won the Junior Category at last month’s County Finals, chose to follow in dad John’s footsteps by setting up his own stained glass industry.
Using waste glass from John’s shop ‘Rainbow Stained Glass’, Jack went about creating his own unique, stained glass designs, handcrafted ornaments worthy of a place on any mantlepiece. Calling his business ‘Jack’s Class Glass’, the thirteen year-old immersed himself in the design process, his lighthouse and boat-themed creations the first to roll off the production line. But these early forays into the world of design weren’t without their setbacks.
‘He came in a few times with cut fingers and that, so his father helped him a bit with the cutting at the start, but he started doing the whole lot himself after a while,’ said Jack’s mam, Anita.
Now a fully-fledged entrepreneur with items on sale at the National Opera House and his local garden centre, the Kilgarvan teenager is putting his earnings to good use. A talented student of taekwondo, Jack travels all around the country to compete in tournaments. However, with entrances fees, travel expenses and accommodation to consider, this has become an increasingly expensive hobby. ‘ The European Championships are on this year in Cork and he’s taking part in them, so I said to him ‘ there’s what you’ll do with your money now”,’ laughs Anita. ‘He’s hoping to keep the business going so he can use the funds for things like that and save. In two year’s time the Taekwondo World Championships are on in Russia.’
For now though Jack’s focus is a little bit closer to home and the Student Enterprise Awards National Finals in Croke Park on May 3. And should he continue his success and bring the title home to Wexford, those in attendance can expect one member of the audience to offer especially vocal appreciation. ‘He told me I made a show of him on the night of the county awards, he could hear me shouting as he went up to get it. He was delighted though, his face lit up,’ Anita recalls. ‘My mother wouldn’t stop taking photos when I won,’ Jack confirms, before adding, ‘I’m very excited about the final, I can’t wait.’
Praising his teachers, Ms Murphy and Ms Breen, Jack said he has received incredible support from everyone at Colaiste Abbain, and Anita, who is a teacher at Enniscorthy Vocational School, was quick to express her gratitude to everyone at Jack’s school. ‘He’s loving it there, it’s a fantastic school. They’ve been very good to him, it’s great when you see the attention they get.’
DERVLA WALSH, KAYLA KENNEDY, DARA TUINSTRA (GAEIL-GO GAMES) SENIOR CATEGORY WINNER - GOREY COMMUNITY SCHOOL
A stressful time studying for an exam was the inspiration for the winning entry in this year’s Senior Category. Having spent many long months wrestling with irregular verbs for Honours Irish in their Junior Cert, Gorey Community School students Dervla Walsh, Kayla Kennedy and Dara Tuinstra decided to help those following in their footsteps.
Thus ‘Gaeil- GO Games’ was born, an educational Irish language card game designed to help students from the ages of 11-18 learn the Irish irregular verbs in a more practical way.
‘ The Irish irregular verbs take up a huge percentage of what’s on the curriculum, they’re so essential to the language, and when we were doing them we were basically just given a sheet and told to learn them,’ said Dervla (16). ‘We thought to ourselves “there must be a better way to learn them? There must be a way to move away from rote learning?” so we started thinking about it and developed a card game, it was a really collaborative effort.’
And having sold the games to schools throughout Wexford, as well as in Wicklow, Cork and Mayo, the team is happy to report that their business idea has been an unqualified success. ‘Not only have we seen 40% improvement in students knowledge of the verbs in under a week, but 100% of the students we interviewed enjoyed playing it,’ said Dervla, who is from Gorey. Taking the proactive approach, the girls, who are taught by Sharon Feeney, chose to contact schools directly, emailing them with information about the game and processing the orders themselves.
With local businesses helping out on the printing side and a network of reliable contacts spreading the word on their behalf, the team is now ready to expand Gaeil- GO Games to an even wider audience.
‘We’re trying to get it stocked online in educational Irish stores. We’d love to contact Gael Linn who have two stores in Dublin which sell Irish language learning aids, it’d be great for us to get it into the market that way,’ Dervla said.
In the meantime there’s the small matter of a National Final in Croke Park next month, something which Dervla is preparing for by checking out the opposition. ‘We’ve been trying to do our research on the other companies that won in the different counties,’ she admitted, ‘ the competition is definitely going to be fierce.’ Those interested in purchasing copies of GaeilGO Games can do so by contacting the girls at gaeilgogamesenterprise@gmail.com
LACHINA O’REILLY FINLAY (FANTASY CREATIONS) INTERMEDIATE CATEGORY WINNER - CREAGH COLLEGE
Lachina ‘Lockie’ O’Reilly Finlay grew up in a creative environment, a household where she and her sisters were encouraged to explore their inventive sides, one where they spent Christmases and special occasions making hand-designed cards, personalised keepsakes with a unique touch.
But little did she know that in years to come, those long evenings with the scissors and glue would see her crowned one of Wexford’s most promising young businesswomen and lead to a trip to Croke Park and a shot at national glory.
Winner of the Intermediate Category at this year’s County Finals, Lachina (or ‘Lockie’ as she is affectionately known) attributes much of her success to a happy upbringing where the O’Reilly Finlay family did things together
‘When we were growing up, we always made arts and crafts in our family,’ said the second year Creagh College student. ‘We always made Christmas cards and stuff, so I took that idea and brought it to the next level, added more detail and design to it, and that became ‘Fantasy Creations’.
A personalised card service, Fantasy Creations stands out from the crowd in how it allows the customer to be part of the design process. ‘All the cards are handmade and can be personalised with your name on it for someone’s birthday or Christmas. They’re all made from recycled paper and you can choose your own designs,’ Lockie revealed.
And although her business idea was inspired by her creative leanings, Fantasy Creations has, thus far, proved a profitable enterprise for the Gorey teenager.
‘I’ve sold them to friends and family and in my nan’s workplace, and I have them on sale in Fishers of Newtownmountkennedy in County Wicklow,’ said the 14 year-old.
Like her fellow finalists, Lockie has had huge support from her family since the start of the process. However, at last month’s final in the National Opera House, one of those there to cheer her on got a little too emotional.
‘I was excited and so happy when I heard that I won in Wexford. My mum, nan and three sisters were there with me on the night, my mum started to cry when it was announced I’d won. She’s very proud of me,’ Lockie smiled.
One of those there on that night who will also be in attendance at Croke Park is Lockie’s teacher, Pat Whiteacre. And whereas the young entrepenuer is reluctant to blow her own trumpet, Pat is more than happy to do it on her behalf.
‘She’s a very diligent, hard-working student, and when she gets an idea into her head she runs with it, she likes to persevere and make it as good as possible. The school is very proud of her.’
And with Creagh College providing the winner of the Senior Category last year, Pat believes the school is forging a reputation for itself on a national scale. ‘It’s another day out in Croke Park. We’d like to bring something back, but it doesn’t matter either way, it’s just a great achievement.’