YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – Applications for Youngstown State University’s 2025 Penguin Shark Tank competition are open. 

The event will offer students the chance to compete for business investments from a pool of $10,000, with top prizes awarded in two categories. All YSU students are eligible to apply.

To participate, students must submit their applications, including a brief video, by March 1. Finalists will be selected to present a five-minute pitch at the final March 20 competition. The contest will begin at 5:30 p.m. in the Williamson College of Business Administration.

Applicants may choose to pitch in one of two categories:

  • Business Idea: A concept or design under development.
  • Established Business: A product or service that is already being sold or is ready to be sold.

The Small Business Development Center at YSU will present a virtual workshop, “Business Basics on Starting and Growing a Business,” at 10 a.m., Feb. 11. Details about the workshop, resource materials and application information can be found HERE.

The Penguin Shark Tank event will feature a keynote address by Stacy Howlett, CEO of Howlett Logistics, before final pitches to the judges. The panel of judges, also known as the “sharks,” includes Howlett; Linda Barton, Sweet Memories Vintage Tees; Patrick Burgan, Burgan Real Estate; Mark Lamoncha, Humtown Products; and DeShawn Scott, The D5 Group.

Penguin Shark Tank is funded in part by a grant from the Burton D. Morgan Foundation. Additional prize money includes the John D. Burgan Entrepreneurship Prize.

For more information, contact Cynthia Manofsky, business administrator, Workforce Education & Innovation for the Excellence Training Center, at 330 941 2358 or ccmanofsky@ysu.edu.