Zambia calling for Northumbria students

A Northumbria student who was crowned Miss Newcastle says she is looking forward to shaking off her ‘beauty queen’ image when she travels to Zambia to work with orphaned children.

Nicole Bailey, a Sports Development and Coaching student, will provide sports coaching to youngsters and help raise awareness of AIDS in communities and schools near Zambia’s capital, Lusaka. She is one of five Northumbria students heading out to Africa later this year as part of the University’s Zambia IDEALS project, a partnership with the Wallace Group and UK Sports which uses sport as a tool to empower and educate young people.

Nicole and her fellow volunteers have until July to raise £1,400 each plus a group target of £3,500 to fund the trip. She explains: “It is a project the University organises, but the volunteers fund themselves.”

The students will be raising money for the trip through a wide range of fundraising activities across the North East.

“One of the things we are doing is putting on a bingo night,” Nicole says. “We have already asked several shops to donate some prizes. They were very generous and donated lots of great stuff for the night, so hopefully we will raise some cash.” When her stint in Zambia is finished, Nicole, who was named Miss Newcastle GB last year, will fly to Malawi for further volunteer work alongside her sister, who is a doctor.

Kate Hansbury is the Student and Staff Development Manager responsible for supporting this year’s cohort. She will spend three weeks in Zambia with the group. She said: “The Zambia IDEALS project is a wonderful opportunity for our students to really throw themselves into a project which makes a real difference. The range of life experiences offered by this programme really is invaluable. It takes them out of the typical student experience and into an environment where they are involved in incredibly challenging but satisfying work with communities who really benefit from their efforts.” nusportcentral.com/sport-foundation/ zambia-project

The global volunteering opportunities at the University are just one of the reasons why our students gain more just a degree at Northumbria – they have a truly outstanding experience.

Award-winning graduate returns to inspire women entrepreneurs

Successful businesswoman and Northumbria graduate, Jo York, returned to the University recently to help mark Global Entrepreneurship Week.

The co-founder of Reframed.tv, a social video concept, reflected on a ‘rollercoaster’ 13 months as a new start-up, during a session on Women and Entrepreneurship. Organised by NUovo, Northumbria’s Entrepreneurs’ Society.

The business was created by Jo, and her cofounder Kev Price, to make video truly social by allowing its users to sync their comments to exact moments in the video. Jo described it as: “Acting as the glue between social interactions and broadcasters.”

Jo provided some valuable advice to those who attended the session, leaving the room inspired and motivated: “I learned how to programme computers here but I also had a great lecturer who brought energy to the course and made me question why I was doing things, something which is important to do in business. University also teaches you about the softer skills, like how to articulate your ideas clearly to others.”

Reframed.tv has just won Best New Business at the North East Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Awards 2014, which is organised by the Women’s Advisory Board. Jo said: “We were thrilled. The award reinforces that Reframed.tv is recognised as a great business initiative and not just a new and exciting idea that people like. We have some great projects coming up.”

Reframed.tv was one of ten companies picked from 240 international applicants for an intense, three-month development programme run by technology start-up accelerator network, Ignite. The team had to prove their business idea was viable and worked hard to test assumptions, network and speak to people.

Jo said: “Speaking to people is when you figure out themes. Don’t be afraid of making mistakes, or receiving some harsh feedback, as the lessons learned are worth more. Every day is a school day in the start-up world, where testing your ideas and then improving on it is all part of the process. We are still understanding our fit, 13 months in. Businesses should develop and change.”

Jo and Kev continue to work with Northumbria through the Student and Graduate Enterprise department and praise them highly. This has provided them with access to professional services, allowing them to make the most of their budget.

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