Coverage from Western Herald, published 2026-04-07.
The Western Herald reported that nine Western Michigan University students advanced from 49 applicants to the Cultivate 269 pitch competition. Four were selected by a campus vote and five by judges, while more than 2,000 students participated in the voting process. The finalist slate paired each student with a proposed venture: Kalea Barnes with Parisian Dream Desserts; Dericka S. Bellamy with The Deranda Institute; Caden Boynton with UnionOPS; Genesis Erhabor with Ground Loop; Khang Nguyen with VolleyNet-Subfinder; Samuel Marseille with Oneshot AI; Garrett Patnoude with Dekree; Chy’Ah Smith with Thirsty Lemon Co.; and Connor Burkett with Volt.
Each finalist received coaching from A:LAB. The April 10 program at the WMU Student Center offered $75,000 from the judges and a separate $25,000 award based on the community vote. KZFV operating leader Dwayne Powell described the response to the first-year competition as extraordinary.
