Five Westminster College students took first place in the Pennsylvania Institute of Certified Public Accounts (PICPA) business competition in Philadelphia Feb. 16.

The competition began in November, when teams from across Pennsylvania submitted business plans for starting a new business from scratch.  It was this plan for Steel City Messenger Service that earned the Westminster team a chance to advance to the finals, along with teams from Slippery Rock State University, the University of Pittsburgh, Wilkes University, and Bloomsburg State University.

While in Philadelphia, PICPA gave each of the five finalists a new challenge for their "business," and the participants had to revise their plan.  The student teams then made a presentation, which included an immediate action plan, a statement of assumptions, a financial assistant job description, an operational/management structure, a strategic plan for the next 12 months, a financial projections for next year, and a marketing and public relations plan to the panel of judges.

"Westminster's Economics and Business Department is very proud of this team's efforts.  They represented themselves and Westminster well," said Tom Rosengarth, associate professor of accounting at Westminster College.  "Westminster has sent three  teams to Philadelphia since 2000, where they have third, second and now first place."

For more information, contact Rosengarth at (724) 946-7169 or e-mail rosengte@westminster.edu.