HDSB students explore their inner entrepreneur at second annual conference
The Entrepreneur Within Conference 2025
The Halton District School Board recently hosted The Entrepreneur Within Conference, a dynamic event that brought together more than 200 high school students to network and learn from real-world business leaders. Back by popular demand, the conference provided a unique chance for students to gain valuable experience about what it takes to succeed in business.
The conference, held at the Queen Elizabeth Park Community Centre in Oakville, welcomed students in Grades 9 through 12 interested in exploring entrepreneurship.
Through interactive sessions, students had the opportunity to attend workshops and panel discussions that provided insight into a wide variety of topics including networking, product development, social media strategy and more. Students also took part in a “Hackathon” that challenged them to solve real world problems in small groups, and present their ideas to a panel of successful entrepreneurs to receive feedback.
Dev Mavani, a Grade 12 student, reflected on his experience: "I found it was really helpful to be at this conference today, because I got to meet a lot of new people and learn a lot of stuff about businesses. We were talking about entrepreneurs bringing different sorts of values to businesses, and that really got me thinking: what values do I want to bring to my business?"
Akshi Bhambani, a Grade 11 student, shared the advice she found most impactful: "Just do it." She explains: "You can always bring it back and make changes, but once you get it out there, you've already done the first step, and that’s usually the hardest step."
Opportunities like The Entrepreneur Within Conference are integral to the HDSB Student Experience Model, which emphasizes the value of experiential learning.
In addition to traditional academics in the classroom, these unique co-curricular opportunities offer students invaluable experience and insight into potential post-secondary pathways and career interests. They allow students to build skills like critical thinking, problem-solving and professional networking, which are essential components of becoming future-ready graduates.
HDSB Director of Education Curtis Ennis encouraged students to recognize the power within them in his address: "I know you have it in you: the creativity, the genius, and all that it takes to contribute to our world and to our society."
By providing experiences that extend learning beyond the classroom, the HDSB creates opportunities for a well-rounded and robust educational journey for every student.
