Tulsans win $50,000 as part of ‘Idea Challenge’
Nearly two dozen Tulsans received a total of $50,000 in cash prizes for entrepreneurship as part of the second Tulsa Idea Challenge.
Designed to encourage innovation in Tulsa, the workshop and competition held at the University of Tulsa recently helped more than 200 participants learn how to collaborate and turn an idea into action, a press release states.
Participants were randomly paired and worked together as teams for two days to learn how to identify a problem, break it down, and create an action plan.
Among the prizes for the winning teams:
- Grand Prize: $25,000 — Impact Echo by Mason Harmon and Chalon Jones — a platform that combines voicemail and AI to speed donor retention.
- Judge’s Favorite: $7,500 – Sugar Cane Shields by Denia Shed and Michelle Simmons – an environmentally friendly disposal system for excess hair dye, reducing around 42,000 pounds of daily waste polluting local waterways with chemicals aggressive.
- More Collaborative Partnership: $7,500 — Salvador Segovia and Cheryl Hayes — a resource directory of local services, support groups, and activities to facilitate connections between individuals with autism and networks.
- Top Triers: $4,000 — Progress Passport by Sara Gayle and Chris Walonski — an educational and resource-based platform that “gamifies” the reintegration process for formerly incarcerated women.
- Most Innovative Idea: $1,000 – Michael Walker and Samuel Gabor.
- Tulsa Impact Idea: $1,000 – David Fickes and Alex Dipboye.
- Best AI Idea: $1,000 – Talk Switch by Nathaniel Floyd and Tahlia Roper.
- Best Health and Wellness Idea: $1,000 – Danielle Anderson and Vanessa Boshuizen.
- Best Social Impact Idea: $1,000 – Talk2Me by Sarah Dennis and David Cardamone.
- Best Consumer Product Idea: $1,000 – Jesica Paige and Nicole Newton.
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The Tulsa Idea Challenge, held at TU May 4-5, was presented by 36 Degrees North, Builders + Backers and Tulsa Remote. More information is available at tulsaideachhallenge.com.
ONE Gas Reports Q1 Revenue of $99.3 Million
ONE Gas released its first-quarter financial results last week, with net income of $99.3 million, or $1.75 per diluted share, compared to $102.6 million, or $1. 84 per diluted share, in the first quarter of 2023.
“Although the weather in the company’s service areas was 9% warmer than normal, the impact on operating profit was mitigated by weather normalization mechanisms,” the report states.
For the seventh consecutive year, ONE Gas received the American Gas Association Safety Achievement Award for excellence in employee safety.
The board of directors declared a quarterly dividend of $0.66 per share ($2.64 annualized), payable on June 4, to shareholders of record at the close of business on May 20.
“Efficient capital execution and our focus on secure operations position us well to serve a growing customer base,” said Robert S. McAnnally, president and CEO. “Based on our first quarter results, we remain on track to achieve the midpoint of our 2024 financial guidance.”
