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The BP Innovation Scholarship programme has been created in celebration of a 25-year partnership between BP and Young Enterprise. The annual scholarship programme will see five students who have participated in a Young Enterprise-led programme awarded $1,000 each to go towards study-related costs for their first year of tertiary education in 2019.

Making the announcement at Auckland Girls’ Grammar School, Debi Boffa, Managing Director for BP New Zealand, said the scheme was about giving back and inspiring and supporting New Zealand’s future innovative leaders to make the most of the opportunities before them.

“We feel so proud to have a partnership of 25 years with Young Enterprise whose purpose is to foster leadership, develop entrepreneurial skills, and build innovative minds for the future. We hope that the BP Innovation Scholarship programme will encourage and enable students with a passion for innovation to go after their dreams and big ideas.”

BP has partnered with Young Enterprise since 1993 to support a range of programmes and initiatives throughout New Zealand, and more recently, extended that partnership to develop the BP Business Challenge. BP staff offer their time as judges at various Young Enterprise events nationwide.

CEO for Young Enterprise, Terry Shubkin, says, “We are so excited to be celebrating this 25-year milestone with our longest standing supporter, BP, and what better way to celebrate than by contributing directly to some of our most innovative and passionate students and the futures they want to pursue after school. This really is a wonderful way to acknowledge 25 years of partnership in supporting the next generation of NZ business leaders.”

This year sees another organisation celebrate a significant milestone as Auckland Girls’ Grammar School turns 130. Ngaire Ashmore, the new principal who stepped into the role last year, has a commitment to raise the school’s academic achievement levels. In one year, the school has already seen pass rates increase by at least 12% in NCEA Level One, Two, and Three .

The scholarship announcement came at the end of Auckland Girls’ Grammar School’s three-day BP Business Challenge. The challenge, organised by Young Enterprise, sees groups of Year 11 students brainstorm, prototype, and present a business idea in three days. Debi Boffa was a judge on the panel for the presentations and said that to recognise the amazing contribution the school is making in the lives of its students, one of the five 2018 scholarship recipients will be a student from Auckland Girls’ Grammar School.

“It’s programmes like the ones Young Enterprise offer that really challenge our students and help them to take calculated risks and explore big ideas in a supportive environment. We’re delighted that BP made the scholarship announcement at our school today and are even more excited that one of our students will be a recipient,” says Ms Ashmore.

Applications for this year’s scholarship open on 21 September and close on 16 November, 2018. Any Year 12 or 13 student who has participated in a BP Business Challenge or Young Enterprise programme may apply.

BP are looking for applicants who are passionate about being an ambassador for change and innovation. Students can apply at www.bp.co.nz.