The event鈥檚 theme was 鈥淭he Grand Revealing鈥� to symbolize the relationships and support system fostered within the program. Deborah Weissberg, an instructor at Rosen College, served as the evening鈥檚 keynote speaker and former POMP member and CEO of BlurtBox, Julien Meyer, 鈥�14, gave closing remarks.

POMP, which pairs upper-level undergraduate students with peers who are looking to enhance their college experience, continued its record of outstanding academic results in Fall 2015:

From Spring 2012 to Fall 2015 (not including summers), 95 percent of students who participated in POMP improved their 麻豆原创 cumulative GPA with an overall retention rate of 97.4 percent. The program also attained a 47 percent overall success rate in helping students who were on academic probation obtain good standing by the end of the term in which they participated in the program.

When POMP began in Fall 2011, it started with a group of 11 members. It has since more than quadrupled its membership to 61 as of Spring 2016. Giving mentees an opportunity to lead and eventually become peer mentors has proven to be a winning formula and bi-weekly meetings keep all participants engaged throughout the process. The regular interaction also builds relationships that help foster a support system between the mentors and mentees, which has been critical to the program鈥檚 success. POMP鈥檚 slogan is 鈥淧artnering to reveal the hospitality leader within鈥� and over the years, the mentoring program has truly transformed into a leadership program.

Each semester, students hear presentations and participate in activities that aid in their personal, professional and academic growth. During the Spring 2016 semester, POMP members volunteered at the National Academic Advising Association Region 4 Conference. This event provided an opportunity to practice their public speaking skills, gain experience in conference planning and exposed them to academic advising at the university level.

In 2014, POMP helped form the first Rosen College Knight-Thon team. is 麻豆原创鈥檚 largest, student-run philanthropy benefiting the Greater Orlando Children鈥檚 Miracle Network. In its first year, the team was comprised of three POMP members and raised about $2,000. This year, nine POMP members participated and the team of 10 raised about $7,000, earning them the Rising Knight Award for the highest percentage increase in fundraising.

For more information about joining Rosen College鈥檚 Peer Outreach Mentoring Program as a mentor or mentee, please contact Vanessa Cogswell.

Legler鈥檚 concept for a social media marketing consultancy focused on helping small businesses build their online presence. A previous online venture selling baked goods sparked her interest in entrepreneurism, but she quickly realized her real passion was promoting small businesses online.

鈥淲inning this award is one of the greatest accomplishments of my life and I am so excited to continue to develop my business and learn more about how to succeed as an entrepreneur,鈥� said Legler. 鈥淚 am so thankful for the opportunity to participate in this competition and to our sponsor, Blurtbox, for making this all happen. I look forward to growing my business and using the hospitality, business development and leadership skills I have gained as a proud Rosen Knight.鈥�

After a competitive application process, four finalists were selected to present to a panel of judges, which included Tom Bland, 鈥�75, 鈥�79, chairman & CEO of Knight Guard Corp; Gregg Hopkins, president of Gregg Hopkins & Associates; Joe Schiavo, 鈥�13, owner of Shepherd and Knucklehead Pub; and Dennis Levy, 鈥�10, owner of Night Auditors of America. Don Fox, CEO of Firehouse Subs, kicked off the competition with a keynote address.

鈥淓ntrepreneurism is at the core of hospitality and this competition helps foster an entrepreneurial mindset among our students,鈥� said Dr. Jeffrey Weinland, competition chairperson. 鈥淲e look forward to making this competition an annual event and an opportunity for our alumni to mentor and connect with aspiring student entrepreneurs.鈥�

The competition was sponsored by BlurtBox, a customer experience management platform that helps customers voice their complaints about a business and allows owners and managers to address customers in real time. Its CEO Julien Meyer is a 2014 麻豆原创 graduate who studied hospitality and event management at Rosen College while running his own startup company. He partnered with Rosen College on the Entrepreneurship Competition to help budding entrepreneurs take a hospitality business venture to the next level.

For more information about the Rosen College Entrepreneurship Competition, please contact Dr. Jeffrey Weinland at 407-903-8061 or Jeffrey.Weinland@ucf.edu.

The Final Round will kick off with a keynote address from Fox, who leads the strategic growth of Firehouse Subs, one of America鈥檚 leading fast casual restaurant brands. Under his leadership, the brand has grown to more than 960 restaurants in 44 states, Puerto Rico and Canada, and is recognized as one of the best franchises in the country.

After Fox鈥檚 address, the competition finalists will present their ventures for a chance to win $10,000 in cash and prizes that can assist with startup costs and help make their dreams a reality. Learn more about the finalists.

The competition is sponsored by BlurtBox, a customer experience management platform that helps customers voice their complaints about a business and allows owners and managers to address customers in real time. Its CEO Julien Meyer is a 2014 麻豆原创 graduate who studied hospitality and event management at Rosen College while running his own startup company. He partnered with Rosen College on the Entrepreneurship Competition to help budding entrepreneurs take a hospitality business venture to the next level.

The Final Round will be held at Rosen College in room 110 and begins with a reception at 5:30 p.m. The program will start at 6:15 p.m.

For more information about the Rosen College Entrepreneurship Competition and the final round, contact Dr. Jeff Weinland at 407-903-8061 or Jeffrey.Weinland@ucf.edu.

Participants are competing for $10,000 in cash and prizes that can assist with startup costs and help make their dreams a reality. Next, the finalists will present their ideas to a panel of judges at the final round on Wednesday, April 20 at 5:30 p.m., which will be held at Rosen College and is open to the public. The winners will be announced that evening.

The competition is sponsored by BlurtBox, a mobile app that helps customers voice their complaints about a business and allows owners and managers to address customers in real time. Its CEO Julien Meyer is a 2014 麻豆原创 graduate who studied hospitality and event management at Rosen College while running his own startup company. He partnered with Rosen College on the Entrepreneurship Competition to help budding entrepreneurs take a hospitality business venture to the next level.

For more information about the Rosen College Entrepreneurship Competition and the final round, contact Dr. Jeff Weinland at 407-903-8061 or Jeffrey.Weinland@ucf.edu.

Participants will compete for cash prizes ranging from $1,000 to $5,000 that can assist with startup costs and help make their dreams a reality. Initial submissions are due Monday, Feb. 15 and eight finalists will be announced on Thursday, Feb. 25. The finalists will present their ideas to a panel of judges on Friday, April 15, which will be held at Rosen College and open to the public. The winners will be announced that day.

The competition is sponsored by BlurtBox, a mobile app that helps customers voice their complaints about a business and allows owners and managers to address customers in real time. Julien Meyer, the company鈥檚 chief executive officer, is a 2014 麻豆原创 graduate who studied hospitality and event management at Rosen College while running his own startup company. He credits his experience at 麻豆原创 for inspiring his entrepreneurial spirit, which is why he believes it鈥檚 important to expose students to all the resources the university community and Orlando have to offer.

鈥淐ompetitions like this allow students to use the creative side of their brains and do something which is seemingly impossible 鈥� turn an idea into a business,鈥� said Meyer. 鈥淢y hope is that students will gain both insight and connections into the world of entrepreneurship and learn more about the ecosystem that exists for entrepreneurship here in Orlando. Win or lose, these competitions open incredible doors and make building a business 100 times easier.鈥�

Meyer is currently CEO of BlurtBox, a mobile app that helps customers voice their complaints about a business and allows owners and managers to address customers in real time. While the technology sector may seem crowded, BlurtBox has already racked up , surpassing 10,000 downloads in the Google Play and Apple App stores since its August 25 launch, raising $125,000 in funding and averaging over 200 new business customers weekly. Meyer and Blurtbox show no signs of slowing down as they seek a second round of financial support to hire employees and grow the company.

At the age of 23, Meyer clearly has a lot on his plate, but he finds time to pursue another passion besides his business 鈥� helping others realize their entrepreneurial dreams, too. As a recent graduate, he鈥檚 now a member of , which is how he initially introduced the idea of an entrepreneurship competition. His experience at 麻豆原创 inspired him to become an entrepreneur, which is why he believes it鈥檚 important to expose students to all the resources the university community has to offer.

鈥溌槎乖� provided me with a network of friends, alumni, professors and mentors who made my ventures possible,鈥� said Meyer. 鈥淓ntrepreneurship is a very scary and lonely path to take and I believe it is only made possible when you are surrounded by people and institutions that support you. 麻豆原创 gave me that ecosystem and those people.鈥�

The Rosen College Entrepreneurship Competition will be an opportunity for students to take an idea for a hospitality-related product or service and develop a plan to bring it to market. Students may enter as individuals or teams and at least one person must be currently enrolled at Rosen College. Participants will compete for cash prizes that can assist with startup costs and help make their dreams a reality.

鈥淐ompetitions like this allow students to use the creative side of their brains and do something which is seemingly impossible 鈥� turn an idea into a business,鈥� said Meyer. 鈥淢y hope is that students will gain both insight and connections into the world of entrepreneurship and learn more about the ecosystem that exists for entrepreneurship here in Orlando. Win or lose, these competitions open incredible doors and make building a business 100 times easier.鈥�

Full details about the Rosen College Entrepreneurship Competition will be announced in early January.

Learn more about at Rosen College.

Twenty sponsors from the hospitality industry recognized outstanding Rosen College students based on criteria including, but not limited to: academic performance, industry experience, passion for hospitality, professionalism and service, and philanthropy.

For the first time in the history of Rosen College, a student-funded scholarship of $500 was awarded to a fellow student. Entrepreneur and current senior Julien Meyer, who was named to the 2014 Order of Pegasus, sponsored The College Stack Entrepreneurial Scholarship to recognize a student who exemplifies excellence in entrepreneurship in the hospitality industry.

Scholarship sponsors for the 2013-2014 academic year include:

AH&LEF – Tony Marshall Memorial

Bob Ashley Memorial

Bob Snow Roast & Toast

College Stack Entrepreneurial

David Schaefer Memorial

ETC of Central Florida

FRLA

Gary Sain Memorial

Hilton Grand Vacation

Langford Family

MPI

OSI Restaurant Partners

P. Reddick Hospitality Management

P.F. Chang’s China Bistro

Harris Rosen Hospitality Management

Rotary Club of International Drive Book

SKAL – International – Orlando

Starwood Hotels & Resorts

Sysco – Central Florida

Wyndham Vacation Ownership

鈥淔or most college kids, spending two or three extra dollars is a huge deal,鈥� said Julien Meyer, a 20-year-old Hospitality Management and Event Management double major at the 麻豆原创鈥檚 Rosen College of Hospitality Management. 鈥淎 couple bucks can really decide where we go to eat or hang out, so we鈥檙e always looking for some sort of deal.鈥�

Many college students download coupon apps to their smartphones or visit websites, like Groupon.com, to find savings on lunch, groceries, coffee, and other various daytime activities; however, there are very few, if any, companies that market nightlife discounts specifically to college students.

Meyer, a self-described life-long entrepreneur, realized this market gap and founded collegeTKTS 鈥� a marketing firm that aims to connect 麻豆原创 students with discounts to local concerts, eateries, special events, nightclubs and more.

鈥淚 used to DJ at different bars around town and I would always invite my friends to hang out, but many of them could only afford to go out one night a week,鈥� Meyer said. 鈥淪o I began talking to the managers I worked for to see if they could offer discounts to college students, and they loved the idea, but needed a medium. This was my 鈥楢ha!鈥� moment.鈥�

With no other direct competition, Meyer launched collegeTKTS in August of 2012 and word quickly spread throughout the local hospitality industry.

鈥淚 know it sounds clich茅, but my company grew faster than I ever expected,鈥� said Meyer. 鈥淚 thought I wouldn鈥檛 have any revenue my first year and that most of my time would be spent cold calling businesses.鈥�

What Meyer underestimated was the power of networking.

鈥淚 scheduled meetings with the managers I knew from DJ-ing and pitched my company to them,鈥� Meyer recalled. 鈥淭hey loved the company and began telling their friends, who also owned restaurants and bars around town. Before I knew it, businesses were calling me for my services.鈥�

What collegeTKTS offers is simple, direct and effective. Through the company鈥檚 website, 麻豆原创 students can register their .edu email address to receive a newsletter loaded with nightlife discounts from Meyer鈥檚 clients.

Within its first five months, more than 1,200 students subscribed to the company鈥檚 newsletter.

But despite Meyer鈥檚 success, the college junior was still looking for guidance to grow his business. Meyer ultimately found a mentor and business partner in Matt Ockwell, a 麻豆原创 alumnus, 鈥�10, who owned the bi-monthly coupon publication, CollegeStack.

鈥淐ollegeStack is very well-known around 麻豆原创 and has a similar business model to my company,鈥� said Meyer. 鈥淚 reached out to their owner, Matt Ockwell, and he was happy to meet with me. We started talking about our goals and he asked me if I would be interested in purchasing his company.鈥�

After rounds of negotiation, the two struck a deal on Jan. 11, and Meyer now owns collegeTKTS and CollegeStack to become the coupon kingpin of 麻豆原创.

鈥淐ollegeStack offers discounts to college students for lunch and other daytime activities, while collegeTKTS focuses on nightlife savings; so I have kind of cornered the market,鈥� Meyer explained.

With the acquisition complete, Meyer and his team now manage over 100 client accounts.

鈥淚 want people to know that there is no formula for success, you just need to go out, experience things, and learn from those experiences,鈥� said Meyer. 鈥淚 hope that my story motivates and encourages others to act on their business ideas and instincts.鈥�

Meyer鈥檚 story and entrepreneurial spirit was recently featured in Small Business Owner magazine, and will also soon be featured in Small Business Today Magazine.