"Shark Tank" Style District Pitch Competition

Volusia County high school students have the opportunity to learn the skills of entrepreneurship and idea generation and to have fun while doing it. The second annual “Shark Tank” style district-wide pitch competition took place at the Center in Deltona for high school entrepreneurship students to pitch their business ideas live to judges from local businesses and chambers of commerce. Nineteen students from four high schools - DeLand, New Smyrna Beach, Seabreeze, and T. Dewitt Taylor - presented their ideas individually or in teams of two. The pitches were creative and offered a dog walking business, a gourmet hotdog shop, a jewelry store, and flavored sunflower seeds. Ultimately, after two rounds of judging, Arianna Tilley, a sophomore at Seabreeze High School, was named the winner. The 16-year-old earned a scholarship prize of $1,500 and a guaranteed spot at the NFTE’s regional tournament in Miami on May 15.