Livestream Recording
Guest Speaker
Mahmoud Khedr
Co-Founder & CEO
FloraMind
Above all, Mahmoud is human-first. He’s a proud Egyptian immigrant passionate about building equitable and scalable solutions empowering underserved communities addressing mental health and education. For the last 8 years, he’s been working at the intersection of technology, government, health, and social impact. He is a serial entrepreneur who is currently the Co-Founder and CEO of FloraMind, an organization with the vision of empowering young people to flourish through their social, emotional, and mental health. Mahmoud previously worked at Facebook, Google, Echoing Green, and The NYC Mayor’s Office of Tech & Innovation. Everything Mahmoud has been involved in throughout his career has been to end unnecessary suffering and empower people to flourish.
As a global advocate and speaker on mental health, youth empowerment, and social entrepreneurship, Mahmoud has received fellowships, awards, and recognition from former President Bill Clinton, Colin Powell, Forbes, and Stanford d. School. In 2019, he delivered his TED talk, “How Toxic Positivity Leads to More Suffering”. He graduated from the City College of New York with a B.S. in Social Entrepreneurship.
Mahmoud is also a VE alum from the class of 2014.
National Competitions
National Finance Competition Winners
1st
Pebbly
South Pasadena Senior High School, South Pasadena, CA
Coordinator: Cathy Mason
Team Members: Matthew Baer, Joseph Broderick
Pebbly takes a new-age spin on Gary Dahl’s classic pet rock, selling dependable companions called Pebbly Pals with a virtual and online aspect.
2nd
P.A.V.E
Academy of Finance & Enterprise, Long Island City, NY
Coordinator: James Caracciolo
Team Members: Youssf Hegazy, Naomi Tsang, Ellamarie Sanchez, Tyler Rieves
Pave provides peer-to-peer mentorship through video content in the courses most needed: college applications, financial literacy, and career success!
3rd
BioVital Incorporated
Germantown Friends School, Philadelphia, PA
Coordinator: Aaron Preetam
Team Members: Miguel Santos, Zach Musthaq
BioVital Inc. provides people the opportunity to enhance their wellbeing, make health easily accessible, and set realistic goals through the monitoring of hydration.
National Human Resources Competition Winners
1st
Arachne Apparel
Stockdale High School, Bakersfield, CA
Coordinator: Brian Devitt
Team Members: Chinazo Okey-Dike, Lindsey Hardin
We re-purpose unused fabrics into trendy clothes that not only benefit the environment, and contribute to sustainability, but provide a cleaner way of making clothes.
2nd
Kathy’s Kits
Herricks High School, New Hyde Park, NY
Coordinator: Liam O’Brien
Team Members: Mika Spahn, Elana Keller, Maggie Lau
Kathy’s Kits is a party-in-a-box service that delivers party kits full of customized, eco-friendly party essentials straight to your door—eliminating the hassle of planning parties.
3rd
MINED
Fountain Valley High School, Fountain Valley, CA
Coordinator: Sarah McCance
Team Members: Valeria Euan, Laura Sabate
MINED is a denim apparel company focused on creating a greener future by incorporating plastic bottles into our clothing.
National Marketing Competition Winners
1st
Väritech
Academy of Finance & Enterprise, Long Island City, NY
Coordinator: James Caracciolo
Team Members: Alexandra Zyskowski, Daenna Lawrence, Nicole Ogrodnik, Josephina Golubov
Introducing Viewz, transforming your window view into any destination you choose, including sounds and scents creating an immersive experience!
2nd
P.A.V.E.
Academy of Finance & Enterprise, Long Island City, NY
Coordinator: James Caracciolo
Team Members: Aya Ibrahim, Jacqueline Collado, Aracely Palaguachi, Fowzia Chowdhury
Pave provides peer-to-peer mentorship through video content in the courses most needed: college applications, financial literacy, and career success!
3rd
Trekers
Bakersfield High School, Bakersfield, CA
Coordinator: Ryker Solano
Team Members: Sidney Frank, Maggie Gless, Nataly Pacheco-Lopez, Riley Spurlock
Trekers is a pet safety company that provides a pet health, location, and activity tracker along with a variety of natural supplemental treats.
National QuickBooks Competition Winners
1st
Havlu
Murrieta Valley High School, Murrieta, CA
Coordinator: Joel Levin
Team Members: Isabella Dadseresht, Rio Aguina-Kang
Havlu offers consumers environmentally sustainable alternatives to everyday products within the hygiene product industry, selling Turkish cotton towels and various hygiene products.
2nd
Custom Fitness Solutions
Murrieta Valley High School, Murrieta, CA
Coordinator: Joel Levin
Team Members: Nicholas McKnight, Gianni Teolis
CFS is a home and office fitness equipment company that supplies a variety of fitness equipment in pre-made and customizable package options.
3rd
Area304
Geneva Community High School, Geneva, IL
Coordinator: Jamie Dunlap
Team Members: Chris Nosewicz, Michael Kemnitz, Anthony Chiovari, Justin Kwon
Area 304 is a real estate firm that leases eco-friendly RVs.
International Competitions Winners
Human Resources
Traveling Around the World
Virgil Madgearu Economic High School, Romania
Coordinator: Mariana Ciobanu
Team Members: Coming Soon
Traveling Around the World provides tourism services with the mission of becoming one of the best tourism agencies in their region!
Marketing
Ecosentials by Unwrapp
Sekolah HighScope, Indonesia
Coordinator: Rahmadhan Kurniadi
Team Members: Daryll Noel Rumangkang, Muhammad Danni L Ardian, Erlangga Pratama Hartoto
Ecosentials is a company that focuses on eco-friendly products to support our customers’ lifestyle.
Global Innovation Challenge Winner
Team # 2
Mentored by:
Julia Regan & Loren Lacy, Intuit
Team Members:
João Schafer de Castro, EFG Sebrae MG Brasil, Brazil
Kade Boehm, Cary-Grove HS, USA
Kelly Feng, Herricks HS, USA
Luma Perigi, EFG Sebrae MG Brasil, Brazil
Michelle Natania Gunawan, Sekolah HighScope Indonesia, Indonesia
Prableen Kaur, Herricks HS, USA
Roshni Patel, Herricks HS, USA
Thomas Vollmer, EFG Sebrae MG Brasil, Brazil
National Business Plan Competition Winners
1st
P.A.V.E.
Academy of Finance & Enterprise, Long Island City, NY
Coordinator: James Caracciolo
Team Members: Youssf Hegazy, Aya Ibrahim, Jacqueline Collado, Naomi Tsang, Samir Lukolic
Pave provides peer-to-peer mentorship through video content in the courses most needed: college applications, financial literacy, and career success!
2nd
Havlu
Murrieta Valley High School, Murrieta, CA
Coordinator: Joel Levin
Team Members: Isabella Dadseresht, Lauren Smith, Rio Aguina-Kang, Alexis Stez
Online retailer that sells environmentally friendly and sustainably hygiene products and Turkish cotton towels.
3rd
Monenti
Westhampton Beach High School, Westhampton Beach, NY
Coordinator: Amy Demchak
Team Members: Valerie Finke, Jackie Glaser, Jade Jackey, Bridget Lopez, Emma Strebel
Monenti is a financial education firm that sells educational, college, and advertisement services.