Highlands University has the Third Annual Cowboy Up! Business Competition – New Mexico Highlands University

NMHU Students Present their Business Pitches to ACE NextGen Business Leaders

SANTA FE, NM–The Department of Business Administration from New Mexico Highlands University held its 3rd Annual Cowboy Up! Business Pitch Competition. The competition was held at Santa Fe Community College on Saturday, April 13th, and hosted by Bill Imada, Chief Connectivity Officer of IW group. The five student teams presented to a room full of members from ACE NextGen, an organization of Asian American leaders in their fields in the United States. The winner was NMHU student John Hall with his business, JW Marketing.

Cowboy Up! launched in 2021 as an extension of the NMHU Department of Business Administration’s commitment to entrepreneurship and offerings of the undergraduate and graduate entrepreneurship programs. NMHU students Alice Midiri, Tommaso Giarola, John Hall, Soché Morgan, Elana Slazar, Lee Truong, and Jack Truong were given two weeks to prepare a full pitch and presentation of their businesses that ranged from a women’s golf apparel line to an app designed to aid senior citizens and their families who were suffering from dementia and alzheimer’s.

On Saturday, the students were accompanied by Dr. D Veena Parboteeah, the Dean of Business, Media, and Technology, and Professors Luis Flores Porras and Gerardo Moreira from Highlands University. Each team presented their pitch and then were graded and questioned about their ideas by the ACE NextGen members, most of whom had very successful business careers themselves. The students then sat down with the ACE members to ask questions and receive counseling to further their ideas.

Dr. Parboteeah said, “ I want to cry like I’m the proud mother of these students. I’m so impressed with them. Presenting to a room of this caliber is a huge opportunity. They handled all of this so well.”

John Hall was chosen as the winner after receiving the most votes from the judges. Second place went to Elana Salazar, and third place went to Sorché Morgan. Cowboy Up! Business Pitch Competition is part of New Mexico Highlands University’s Business Week, which took place April 16-19 at the Main Campus. The Business Week includes faculty research presentations, Student/Alumni Connections, and a Business Luncheon with guest speaker Dr. Craig Watters on April 18th in the Student Union Building Ballroom.