North Merrick students pitch business ideas at Shark Tank event

Motivated by a desire to make meaningful contributions to their community, fifth graders conducted research, rehearsed captivating pitches, and prepared extravagant visual displays for presentation night. These young entrepreneurs took the stage to defend their inventions before a “sea of sharks” in hopes of receiving their generous monetary investments. All entrepreneurs walked away with exceeding amounts of money, even above their initial asking evaluations.

Top performing projects included Christian Rossol and Joseph Taglia’s “Gel 27,” a cooling lacrosse helmet that received $1.5 million; John McGuire, Andrew Lin, and William Oetting’s “Quad-Desk,” an innovative student desk with various helpful components that received $1.4 million; and Rose Acanfora and Charley Jacobi’s “The Tempo Cup,” a transformative hot/cold drinking vessel that received $1.4 million. All students delivered impressionable pitches, imagined innovative ideas, and expressed true qualities of a young entrepreneur.