The writing program at the University of California, Santa Barbara, honored students at its annual Celebration of Excellence in Business Communication.

The keynote speaker, Dennis Allen, CEO of Allen Associates, a Santa Barbara contracting firm nationally known for green building practices, presented the Schwartz Family Lecture on International Business Communication entitled “Greening Business Communication.” 

This event was made possible by Mark and Lynda Schwartz of Santa Barbara, who are longtime supporters. The Schwartz Family Endowed Awards for Outstanding Entrepreneurial Business Plans honor six teams of students chosen as finalists in the competition from 150 submissions. Top honors included a cash prize of $1,000. This year’s winners were:

» First Place: “Home Grown,” by Sherrie Dennehy, Lauren Gleason, Lucy Hunter-Silverstone, Robyn Richards, Elizabeth Vaughn;

» Second Place: “Firewise Landscaping,” by Brenda Gallardo, Christopher Hevesy, Chih-Hsien Liu, Robert Matchett; “CookAlong.com, Video Recipes for Healthy Eating” by Chris Egeberg, Jillian Heim, Kanya Heng, Erica Rangel;

» Honorable Mentions: “Bee Fit,” by Allison Bolger, Rachel Hall, Kaitlin Heneghan, Kinsey Johnson, Joe Riggio Jr., Kevin Shearer; “ChefPro by Cooking Buddy,” by Liz Cunningham, Heather Hoffman, Shadee Ramezani, Keddy Russell-Curry; “Helix Aspersa Acres,” by Cynthia Lau, Ka Man, Eric Reifinger, Adelaida Velasco, Evan Yale.

This year marked a new award for student writing that promotes sustainability. The Green Initiative Fund (TGIF), created by students and supported by student fees, provided prizes totaling $3,500 for three awards. The winning prizes went to: 

» Emerald Yang, for Promotions;

» Robert (Bo) Baney, Kevin Bowen, Tori Downing, Carly Keen, Melissa Quicho, for the Project Proposal “Grease Guzzlers: Sustainable Biodiesel Collection, Production, and Power-Generating Program;’’ and

» Ryan Everts, Allison Field, Deanna Hayley, Brenton Miller, Alexandra Pantelis, Sean Sabat, for the business plan “Green Paws.” 

Alan Tratner of Green2Gold gave a surprise gift to the winners of the TGIF business plan award, “Green Paws,” which enables them to take advantage of the full range entrepreneurial incubation services with the idea of turning their student project into a real business.

In addition, the Guffey Excellence in Business Communication Award, which recognizes student writing in business and marketing, was awarded to Shannon Morrison, for Excellence in Marketing and Public Relations, and Sarah Caminker, for Excellence in Advanced Business Communication. Dr. Guffey, a textbook author and local resident, personally presented two prizes of $250.

Approximately 150 people attended the event.