7 minute read
Schools
MOVE OVER ‘SHARK TANK,’ SCOTS TANK HAS NATURAL POWER
HPHS student Brian Rosen developing healthier energy drink
Advertisement
By Josh Hickman
People Newspapers
Last year, as a junior, Brian Rosen entered the Design and Leadership class at Highland Park High School and did his final assignment so well that he’s still working on it.
The Moody Advanced Professional Studies (MAPS) course culminated with students creating and pitching business ideas to a panel of five judges in a Shark Tank-style competition called Scots Tank.
Rosen pitched his idea for Natural Power, an all-natural energy drink that would capitalize on the trend toward healthier living.
“One market I identified that was still lacking a healthy alternative was energy drinks,” he said. “I want to get in on that.”
He won the Scots Tank pitch and $1,500 to launch his product.
“The big players like Monster and Red Bull have a lot of sugars and artificial flavors,” Rosen said. “The inspiration for Natural Power came from my own health journey, and I want to create something that will actually help the consumer.”
Brian Rosen, now a senior, is developing the Natural Power healthy energy drink he pitched as a junior during a Scots Tank competition. COURTESY HPHS AND BRIAN ROSEN
He created the logo and packaging, then assembled a team for product development. Opting for stevia as a natural sweetener over sucralose (which studies have suggested could cause liver damage), Rosen also plans to use fruits and vegetables for flavor, vitamins, and nutrients, along with natural caffeine as the stimulant.
“We’re also trying to differentiate ourselves based on flavor,” Rosen said, noting many popular energy drinks’ artificial taste and unpleasant aftertaste.
The advertising campaign will include a prototype can and a box featuring a video monitor showing a concise pitch for prospective retailers and potential investors.
“We’re going to approach high-end supermarkets who already prioritize healthier products — Whole Foods, Central Market, Foxtrot near SMU,” he said.
Rosen and his team have conducted taste tests on the stevia sweetener and are working out the molecular kinks of the aftertaste.
“We’re not looking for ‘it tastes great, but,’” Rosen said. “We’re looking for ‘it tastes great.’”
He doesn’t aim to appear on the real Shark Tank television show and said he’s not apprehensive about finding investors.
“I’m very fortunate to know a lot of people who have been helpful to me and can be very helpful in the future, so any of the fundraising that would be necessary for the product would likely be private,” he said. “There’s already been a lot of interest.” Rosen’s passion and ideas proved a perfect fit for the MAPS program. “As a junior, I already knew I wanted to major in business in college,” he recalled. “The MAPS program looked very interesting, so I joined it.”
Rosen, already accepted into the University of Indiana’s Kelly School of Business, is hopeful about the University of Pennsylvania and his sports drink.
“What started out as a class project I saw as something that had a lot of potential,” he said. “I could actually make a real difference in people’s lives.”
Connect 4? Why Not More?
HPHS students invent new games for Scottie Joe’s coffee customers
By Carley Hutchison
People Newspapers
Engineering, problem-solving, technology, mechanics – Highland Park High School MAPS program students employed those and other skills for a recent project.
The Moody Advanced Professional Studies (MAPS) program challenged students to make tabletop games for customers of Scottie Joe’s coffee shop to interact with while they wait for their drinks.
Scottie Joe’s is an 18+ program-run coffee shop on the campus that is accessible to all students and teachers. The menu features a wide range of drinks, from hot coffee to iced lemonade.
Project parameters were mainly wide open except for a deadline.
Juniors Charlie Poray and Row Dyer found inspiration in Connect 4, where two players take turns dropping their colored game pieces into a vertical game board until someone can complete a four-piece line of one color. “We took the original idea of Connect 4 and said, ‘Why just two people?’” Poray said. Poray and Dyer come from big families, so Connect 4 was never picked off the rack for game night. The boys wanted to make their game more interactive for a larger group of people. “We went through a number of design innova-
We took the tions to try to accomplish our original idea of goal of keeping Connect 4 and the design style and play style of said, ‘Why just two Connect 4 but people?’ being able to add more people,” Charlie Poray Dyer said. The two boys then took their ideas to paper and started with a 2D drawing. After the paper schematics, Dyer and Poray put their ideas into the Fusion 360 3D printing software to print their game. Other students found inspiration from games such as Shuffleboard and Battleship.
Teen Gets Cancer and Stoney Clover Lane Collection Ava Danuser’s line features butterflies, supports nonprofit Salood’s work
By Chloe Ching
People Newspapers
A ripple of ambivalent news hit Ava Danuser.
While going through chemo, the teen cancer warrior learned she could help other families battling cancer.
A friend told Ava about Salood, a Texas nonprofit bringing businesses and cancer patients together to create brand partnerships benefiting families affected by pediatric cancer.
Salood was looking for more ambassadors, so Ava, now a Highland Park High School freshman, decided to get involved.
“When a child is diagnosed with cancer, the intensity of the treatments typically forces one parent to stop working, which significantly impacts a family’s income at a time when medical expenses escalate,” Salood co-founder Joshua
Ava Danuser picked the colors, designed patches, and chose which bags to include in her Stoney Clover Collection. The product line supports Salood’s work helping families impacted by pediatric cancer. COURTESY SALOOD
Castillo said. “That’s where Salood comes in to provide support, no questions asked.”
As she was finishing chemo, Ava was accepted as a 2022 Salood Ambassador to represent a line of Stoney Clover Lane products.
“I was so excited to be chosen — and even more excited when I found out it was going to be a capsule collection of multiple pieces, not just a backpack,” she said.
Ava was diagnosed with Ewing’s Sarcoma,
GO SHOPPING
Visit stoneycloverlane.com and click on Collaborations to find the Salood collection. Stoney Clover Lane will donate 100% of net proceeds to help Salood assist families impacted by pediatric cancer. Visit salood.org.
a rare bone cancer, at age 13. As a competitive cheerleader, she had a nagging injury and decided to go to the doctor. After several appointments, she scheduled a biopsy and discovered it was cancer.
Ava did nine months of chemo with surgeries in between.
“I had another surgery this past May, and in October, I had my year’s post-treatment scans and am officially one-year cancer free,” she said.
Ava had a voice in the Stoney Clover collection, designed to raise awareness for pediatric cancer and support families affected by this disease.
She picked the colors, designed patches, and chose which bags to include. The butterfly symbolizes hope to Ava, so she added her butterfly drawing.
“Stoney Clover Lane was amazing. They asked me so many questions and really wanted my input on everything,” she said. “Seeing the products come to life was so cool.”
Ava described the experience as a silver lining to her cancer journey.
“Having cancer as a kid is really hard, and it’s hard on parents and siblings, too,” she said. “I hope this collection with Stoney Clover Lane helps a lot of families in Texas.”
Now is the perfect time for pruning your trees!
•Tree/Shrub Pruning •Tree Removals •Fertilization •Insect/Disease Treatments
Call us today! 214.528.2266
Two leading companies joining forces to serve the Dallas-Fort Worth and N. Central TX area. www.savatree.com
