 "Photo: Jackie Guglietta")
 "Photo: Jackie Guglietta")
There are a variety of clubs and organizations on campus that work towards common goals, but there is one group that is stepping outside Medaille’s boundaries. Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) is a 100% non-profit club that works at linking Medaille with other businesses to make a difference in communities.
Their mission is to create a more sustainable world through positive business while teaching SIFE’s members how to create and present business plans.
SIFE has criteria it follows and executes through different projects. The criteria focus on group and program stability, economic sustainability, the environment, financial literacy, business ethics and success skills.
Each club on campus is required to have an advisor and SIFE has five. Kenneth Radig, Mike Lillis, Patrick Johnson, Kevin Bosner and Robert Tian help steer SIFE in the right direction.
“I’ve been really impressed with the ambition of students and the commitment they have shown,” said Bosner, Assistant Professor, Business.
There are five main projects SIFE is engaged in and each project has its own student manager that leads the rest of the group.
Choosing Healthy Alternatives through Mentoring and Play (CHAMP) is a program that works with Catholic schools in the area.
Danielle Rollins, CHAMP project manager and sophomore Business manager said, “I love to work with children and I like the idea behind the CHAMP program, which is teaching kids business trade and entrepreneurial skills. We always would like more help in the club, especially from Education majors.”
Another project called Creating Assets, Savings and Hope (CASH) allows the team to go into various sites and prepare taxes for low-income families.
Sam’s Club’s team focuses on recycling and other “going green” ideas.
Spot Coffee is another group that works with the renovation of the fourth floor in the Main Building. Members have to correlate with the business leaders of Spot Coffee, a coffee shop that will be opening in the lounge.
The Guatemala project is led by Dan Tomaka, a junior Business major. Syracuse University’s SIFE has motivated Medaille’s SIFE to work on helping women in Guatemala rise from poverty.
“Our team has a love to improve lives of others in faraway places,” said Tomaka. “We want to push to give them the same opportunities that we have with our drive to bring positive change.”
The people in Guatemala engage in the craft of weaving, which has become a part of their daily lives. They make jewelry, bags, clothing and many other items. However they do not have the outlets to sell these goods where they live. If by chance they do, these crafters sell their products for less money than it took them to make.
The main mission of SIFE members is to sell products in our community that have been made in Guatemala. The money that is raised is then sent back to these people. This is intended to provide them with a source of regular income so their families can eat, afford school and improve their lives overall. These crafts will soon be sold on campus and in the Buffalo area.
“I wanted to leave my mark at Medaille College,” said president and founder of SIFE, Alex Lindauer a senior Business major, “and when I was granted the opportunity to do so, I jumped on it by creating SIFE.”
Be the first to comment on this article!