Student Innovation at Pioneer Weekend

The first weekend of October marked this year’s Pioneer Weekend pitch competition, a unique opportunity for Grinnell students to gain valuable entrepreneurial experience. This year, 13 teams comprised of 53 students applied their skills of innovation to develop business or non-profit plans, which they would go on to pitch to a panel of judges. The weekend presented participants with the chance to learn from professionals, connect with students with similar ambitions, and experience entrepreneurship in a hands-on manner. 

The competition commenced with a keynote talk from Tai Duncan ‘04, the principal of Next Play Strategies, part-time Director of Strategic Partnerships at Swish House, and a board member of A Silver Lining Foundation. Duncan spoke to attendees about the importance of forging original paths and coming up with unique ideas rather than limiting oneself to traditional ideas of entrepreneurship. With this wisdom fresh in their minds, Pioneer Week participants then shared their pitches and formed teams to develop their ideas into business and non-profit plans.

This year, Barb Baker of Grinnell Mutual, visiting instructor Robert Gehorsam ’76, and Wilson Center Director and Professor Jeff Blanchard lent their time to serve as Pioneer Weekend mentors. Before presenting their pitches to the judges, Pioneer Weekend participants attended Mentor Sessions, receiving feedback from these experienced professionals to strengthen their projects. 

On the final day of the competition, students presented their final pitches to the Pioneer Weekend judges, the culmination of their hard work. The judging panel consisted of Grinnell College President Anne F. Harris, Vice President of Student Affairs JC Lopez, and 2026 Social Innovator in Residence Antoinette Priscilla Carroll. Students were judged based on product design and innovation, consumer need fulfillment, business plan and presentation quality, and societal benefit.

This year, students Champ-Pacifique Mukiza ’29, Maun Ahmed ’29, Kobina Derby ’29, Raun Ahmed ’29, and Sora Mamo ’28 took first prize for their website PrintGo, through which Grinnell students can locate nearby printers and view their paper and toner statuses, simplifying the often complicated task of locating a working printer on campus. They received a total of $2,000 for their creation to be split among them. 

Students Drilon Qerimi ’27, Sophia Torres da Cruz ’27, Jafar Jarrar ’27, Meilin Hoshino ’27, and Farhan Rahman ’27 took second place for GrinnSpace, a website to simplify finding event spaces, and Alyssa Alexander ’29, Olivia Brightly ’29, and Lily Lockwood-Keil ’29 came in third for their business Community Corner, aimed at destigmatizing accessing community resources. 

On his Pioneer Weekend experience, Maun Ahmed ’29 of the victorious team said, “Pioneer Weekend was really nerve-racking during the pitches but looking back, it was really fun. This experience reminded me to have fun with whatever I'm doing.”