By Susan Houston Klaus
Donor Support Allows UNL Students to Develop their Tech Business
University of Nebraska–Lincoln students and entrepreneurs Kenny Morales and Wilson Overfield know the transformative power of scholarships.
The pair, seniors at the UNL Jeffrey S. Raikes School of Computer Science and Management, developed FindU, a smartphone app that matches high school students with the right college based on academic and financial criteria.
“We want to help students be able to not just find schools that they’re interested in but also find out how they’re going to pay for those schools,” Overfield said. “What scholarships are they going to be able to find at these particular universities to be able to afford their dream?”
Overfield, who graduated from Ralston High School, remembers hearing his parents talk about their student loan debt. “When I was a kid, I didn’t really understand what it was. ‘What is this thing called debt?’
“When I finally understood, I said I’m never going to be in that position. So, I just made sure that I did the things necessary to get the scholarships that I would need.”
Before they arrived on campus their freshman year, both Overfield and Morales had earned multiple scholarships, including from the Raikes School. In the time since they’ve developed FindU, they also have received prize money from campus competitions and funding from other sources that include the Nebraska Entrepreneurship Accelerator, which is funded by private support, and the Raikes School Startup Studio, which is supported by Invest Nebraska and matching partners.
The dollars have been a big boost as they look forward to graduation and taking their business to the next level, said Morales, a software engineering major and first-generation college student who graduated from Grand Island Senior High School.
“Just not having to worry about working while going to school is probably the biggest weight off of my back,” he said. “I can’t imagine being a student having to pay for school and also trying to start a business.”
This summer, Morales and Overfield are working full time in San Francisco, where they’re focused on growing their business. During their stay, they are making contacts and meeting with venture capital firms to stir up interest in FindU.
They don’t take for granted the opportunity to fully focus on the business, said Overfield, a computer science major.
“It isn’t something that we’ve really been able to do in the past because we always have school or jobs or internships, so this is our chance to actually, really give FindU the attention that it deserves.”
While students who receive financial support don’t always get the opportunity to personally tell donors, “‘thank you for changing my life,’” Morales said, “the impact shows itself every time a student competes in a competition or goes through their education.”
And, when it comes to scholarships, it doesn’t take a lot to make an impact, Overfield said.
“When you give $1,000, even $500, any amount that you can give to a student,” he said, “that relieves some of that burden and allows them to focus on their academics, their future and the things they want to create.
“Even having $100 to put towards a book, just the stress that that can relieve for a student, that might relieve enough stress for them to feel good enough to go try and achieve something else.”
