Marianna Steele '23 and Lauren Voinovich '23 named finalists in the 2022 Accelerate Pitch competition

Two members of the Hathaway Brown School Class of 2023 were named finalists in the 2022 Accelerate Pitch competition. Business and Finance fellows Marianna Steele and Lauren Voinovich won in the Quality of Life category. They were the only students to pitch. Their pitch “Second Chance’s Gretchen,” addresses the confusion about what’s recyclable by creating a comprehensive database and app that allow consumers to easily check which household products can be recycled in their community. 

About Accelerate

Accelerate is a pitch competition that gives individuals across Greater Cleveland the chance to win seed money to help launch their idea to make the region a better place. Applicants were selected to pitch in one of six categories:

• Education
• Economic prosperity
• Health and wellness
• Quality of life
• Social change
• Authentic Cleveland

The six finalists pitch again to the full audience, which votes on the winner. The winner receives $5,000 and the remaining five finalists each receive $2,000 to help bring their ideas to life.