Now that the start of SXSW Interactive is just a few short days away – we want to share some WUSTL pride with you.  Two amazing current undergrad (that’s right, I said undergrad) students have been doing some pretty fabulous things over the past few months, not the least of which is being named finalists in SXSW Startup Madness.  In addition to this stellar accomplishment, Blake Marggraff and Jolijt Tamanaha have been making waves in St. Louis and beyond for a while now.

Blake Marggraff and Jolijt Tamanaha

Blake, a current WUSTL senior founded Betaversity, a mobile lab and online platform for students and received an Arch Grant in 2014. He was recognized in St. Louis based Alive Magazine’s 1st ever Innovation issue as one of 35 Bold Minds creating a better St. Louis. And then there was that other time, when Blake and Betaversity were featured in the Popular Mechanic’s article that listed St. Louis as the #1 startup city in America.

When Jolijt was a sophomore she founded the startup Farmplicity and then turned around and sold it by the end of her junior year.  With the success of Farmplicity under her belt what else could she do but start another company in her senior year?  This one is called Champio. Champio has developed a web app which enables a company’s employees to competitively engage in the brand’s social media platforms.  In early 2015,  Champio was one of six women-owned companies to receive a $50,000 investment from St. Louis based Prosper Women Entrepreneurs.

It’s a wonder how these two manage to get any class-related work done!  We are sure many sleepless nights are involved. But if we were betting on it, we are certain they wouldn’t have it any other way.

Cheers,

Stacy