Recap of Gallaudet’s Alumni BisonTank event
Gallaudet students: Hello! Hello!
Franco Bippus: What are we doing here?
Samantha Moore: What’s going on? Alumni BisonTank! It’s really neat!
Franco: Where? Here at the SAC building, in the MPR room. Come on and join us!
(B-roll footage showing people gathering at the area where the BisonTank event takes place. There is a booth sponsored by Convo with several Convo employees)
Samantha: Wow, it’s packed here. People are spread all over. This is a networking event so people can chat and connect with others. You never know what could happen, right?
Franco: We have two deaf-owned businesses that are supporting us. Streetcar 82 brought some fresh beer here. Crepe Crazy is also here with delicious food!
Samantha: How does the competition work? Each individual will have three minutes to make a pitch to the judges. There are four judges. After the pitch, there is a five-minute Q/A session. After voting, the 1st place winner will get $5,000, the 2nd place gets $3,000, and the 3rd place gets $2,000.
Brooke Roberts: My business name is Deaf Podcast Productions.
Student Reporter #1: What is your business idea?
Jill Bianoc: It is the Bianco Ball Academy (BBA).
Frank Allnut: The Allnuttville Smoke Shack.
Abiola Haroun: AFROTiKÁ. This is the sign. It offers contemporary African-inspired clothes, art, and other things.
Sheri Youens-Un: Deafroot. (Shows sign). It’s all about wood.
Jacqueline Wunderlich: Signs of Communication.
(B-roll clip of an audience seated with the BisonTank event starting)
CREDIT: Facebook/Gallaudet U
(Clips pulled from Gallaudet University's livestream of the event. Full event video available at the link in the transcript)
I’m your master of ceremonies for tonight!
What’s notable about tonight?
This is the first-ever Alumni BisonTank!
We have a sign language economy that is worth 3 to 10 billion dollars in the U.S. alone.
(Quick b-roll clips of contestants’ pitches and interactions with judges)
MC: The third place goes to… Jacqueline!
MC: The second place goes to… Frank!
Jarrod Musano, Convo CEO: (The winner is) AFROTiKÁ!
Abiola: Thank you. I feel like I’m in a dream! I’m not sure if this is real! I need to go back to sleep!
(B-roll footage of Abiola Haroun accepting her award from Musano)
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[Sponsored video from Convo: www.convorelay.com]
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Student Reporter #2: How do you feel after winning?
Abiola: I feel like I’m in a dream now. I need to go home and sleep. This can’t be real! I was not expecting it!
Student Reporter #2: You’ve got to pinch yourself!
Abiola: Yes, I want to wake up!
Student Reporter #2: Seriously, congratulations!
(B-roll of BisonTank contestants cheering)
Samantha: The contest is over. This is the first-ever alumni event. Now, please tell us about your experience as a former contestant and now running the event. What has your experience been like?
Lorenzo Lewis: This experience has been very positive. I’m happy to see that all the contestants enjoyed their experience being in the accelerator program. And the fans really enjoyed watching it. I hope that some of you who are Gallaudet alumni feel motivated to join the BisonTank competition! Please come! Next year I’ll be looking at you! Take care!
Student Reporter #1: Wow, today was a fantastic day. We really enjoyed meeting people, networking, and the food! It was fun.
Student Reporter #2: Yes, it was an intense competition with seven challengers. It took a while. I was nervous watching it. Now everything is wrapped up with a winner. The food and the networking are a champ. Good night.
Samantha:
You may have noticed our shirts and the “BSC” logos. It stands for Business Student Council. What is it? We connect the Business Department with students here on campus and provide resources such as workshops or conferences for students who are interested in business.
Franco: We also provide various events such as the Alumni BisonTank. In the spring, we’ll have a BisonTank for Gallaudet students. We also have a Sutcliffe Biz Bowl for students who want to compete to see who has the best business knowledge.
More info about BisonTank: https://www.bisontank.com/
Full event: https://www.facebook.com/gallaudetu/videos/654918862869423/