The Indiana University East Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) team won first place in its league during the SIFE United States Regional Competition Exposition held April 8 in Chicago.

IU East students on the team are James Healton of Centerville, Ind., Morgan Imhoff of Richmond, Ind., Cathleen Loy of Lewisburg, Ohio, Chelsy Ozbun of Lynn, Ind., and Blake Pieratt of Eaton, Ohio. Tim Scales, lecturer of business and director of the Center for Entrepreneurship, is the team’s advisor. The team has been working throughout the year on various projects related to teaching financial literacy concepts in the community.

IU East competed in League Two which included Bethel College from Mishawaka, Ind.; Alverno College from Milwaukee, Wis.; Central Michigan University from Mount Pleasant, Mich.; Aquinas College from Grand Rapids, Mich.; and Cornell College from Mount Vernon, Iowa.

Having observed these competitions before, David Frantz, dean of the IU East School of Business and Economics, commented that “the level of professionalism and preparation of student teams at these competitions is top notch. For the IU East team to win its league and advance to the national competition is a very impressive accomplishment.”

SIFE is a nonprofit organization that gives students the tools to learn the free enterprise system in a real working situation. SIFE challenges students on more than 800 college campuses nationwide to take what they’re learning in the classroom and use their knowledge to better their communities.

The team will now attend the National SIFE competition scheduled for May 11-13 in Minneapolis, Minn.

For more information, contact the School of Business and Economics, at (765) 973-8343.