Mary Kay, in its second World Series of Innovation (WSI) and in partnership with Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE), invited people ages 13-24 to find solutions for some of the world’s biggest challenges while fostering an entrepreneurial mindset.
Specifically, this challenge asked students to promote workplace equity for women and girls, addressing the UN Sustainable Development Goal 5: Gender Equality. More than 3,000 students from diverse backgrounds submitted ideas and more than 400 students participated in the Mary Kay-sponsored challenge. The three winners of Mary Kay’s 2021 Challenge are:
- First Place: STEMinists These students created an online portal that connects female professionals to young female STEM students as mentors to bolster female success in STEM fields. Developed by 15-year-old Misaki Nguyen of Silver Creek High School in San Jose, California.
- Second Place: Pads for Peace The feminine product subscription box service donates a box to homeless shelters for every box purchased. Developed by 14-year-olds Ashley Cohen, Olivia Mooney and Ashley Simonian of Brentwood School in Los Angeles.
- Third Place: Black Girls Mean Business A virtual summer business program for Black high school girls, which matches young professionals with mentors from industry leading businesses. Developed by 17-year-olds Brianna Holmes, Alyssa Torres, Rachel Holmes, and 18-year-old Cherry Zhang of Silver Creek High School in San Jose, California.
“Congratulations to the winners of this year’s World Series of Innovation Challenge!” said Deborah Gibbins, Mary Kay Inc. Chief Operating Officer. “Mary Kay knows the importance of entrepreneurship and the role it plays in the world today and in the future, which is why we invest annually in programs and initiatives to help empower women and girls around the world. We are beyond excited for the competitors and winners who tackled this challenge and demonstrated solution-forward thinking and identified great opportunities to achieve gender equality in the workplace.”
