With the motivational theme, “The Future is You,” and a fresh rebrand, the fourth annual Createur Conference & Pitch Competition was hosted by the McGraw School of Business at Olivet Nazarene University, April 16–17, 2026. Created to inspire young entrepreneurial minds to engage in creative ventures as they build connections with professionals in the industry, this unique event has helped to fuel potential business opportunities for high school and college students.
According to Dan Ferris ’90/’01 MBA, the director of Olivet’s Entrepreneurship Program, the goals for this year’s conference were three-fold:
- Engage high school students by providing not only business insights but showing off Olivet such that they might be interested in applying to the University
- Inspire all attendees through personal story telling from industry leaders in the reality of being true to their faith as they lean into their calling as entrepreneurs
- Provide a platform for innovators at both the high school and college levels that shows their potential as entrepreneurs, rewards the top pitch contestants and provides opportunities to network with business leaders who desire a chance to raise up future entrepreneurs
“It has been a joy picking up the torch of the Createur conference in its fourth year,” Ferris reflected. “The team that lead previous conferences set a high standard. Through updated branding, targeted content and record registration, this year’s team provided a conference the entire campus can be proud of.”
The conference and pitch competition were both free to attend — and members of the community, including high school students, local business owners and entrepreneurs were encouraged to attend. This year, the conference welcomed around 950 attendees, 230 of which were high school students representing 20 different schools.
The keynote speaker, Earl Seals, co-founder of N2 Companies and executive producer of The Chosen, addressed the conference and the entire student body at Olivet in the Thursday morning opening ceremony. Integrated throughout the conference schedule, 14 breakout Spark Sessions featured established entrepreneurs who represented a range of industries including real estate, food service, art and animation, leadership training, orthopedic care, marketing, artificial intelligence, investment management and more. Six young entrepreneurs formed a discussion-focused panel to speak candidly about their experiences in building purposeful projects.
“It has been a privilege to connect with and meet many new speakers and judges who readily supported coming to Olivet and sharing at the Createur conference,” Ferris added. “Of note, approximately two thirds of our speakers and judges were Olivet alumni, and over 60% of our spark speakers and panelists lead a session for the first time!”
The first round of the business idea pitch competition took place on Thursday afternoon. The high school award recipients were:
DripStopper | Elias Vasilakis | $1,000 | BBCHS
DocuGenie | Michael Edmonstone | $1,000 | Wheaton Academy
GolfHQ | Zachary Forgrave | $1,000 | Brownsburg High School
HIALO | Isaac Lee | $1,000 | IL Mathematics Science Academy
Following initial rounds of pitching their business ideas on Thursday afternoon, the collegiate finalists were selected to move forward in the competition on Friday morning. The final pitches were given in front of a packed audience in Kresge Auditorium and the following winners were announced:
Tandem Index | Phoebe Jeske | $5,000 | Wheaton College
PrintPutt | Hayden Colclasure | $4,000 | Olivet Nazarene University
Brickademia | Andrew Beaverson | $3,000 | Taylor University
EchoChurch | Ben Robinson | $2,000 | Olivet Nazarene University
Ridely | Unique Alston | $1,000 | University of South Florida
OliCart | Joi-Ann Henry | $1,000 | Olivet Nazarene University
Smitty’s | Kaden Smith | $1,000 | Olivet Nazarene University
Beyond providing financial support to entrepreneurial projects, the Createur Conference is meant to inspire and engage entrepreneurs of all ages. With an overarching focus on building businesses based on integrity and strong character, the goal of the conference was to encourage everyone to lead through a lens of faith.
“What has always stood out is Createur’s intentional focus on inspiring young people to dream boldly while thinking creatively about how to serve others,” said Anthony Mata-Bolandi ’25, entrepreneurship graduate assistant. “I see Createur as a platform for advancing God’s kingdom here on earth. Equipping and inspiring the next generation of createurs, innovateurs, starteurs, buildeurs and entrepreneurs to use their gifts in service to Him and to others.”
For more information about the McGraw School of Business, visit Olivet.edu/Business. For more information on the Createur Conference, visit Createur.Olivet.edu.
