Indigenous 
Submitted by Michael Richards, Student Leadership & Co-Curricular Learning Officer, Tri-Campus
Carrick Irwin received an email from a faculty member offering him an unexpected opportunity: to join the European Innovation Academy’s entrepreneurship program in Porto, Portugal. As someone working to manage generalized anxiety disorder and push beyond his comfort zone, Carrick knew this was an opportunity he couldn’t pass up.
Having just completed his post graduate certificate in Project Management at St. Lawrence College, Carrick was in a unique position to help his team organize ideas into a clear, big-picture plan. “I remembered lessons from my leadership classes about teams moving from ‘storming’ to ‘performing,’ but from day one, our group was committed and collaborative,” he says. Carrick even stepped into the role of Chief Technology Officer, designing Sunflowr—a mobile app to help users manage social media habits and improve mental health—with support from mentors and AI tools.
The team became finalists for a trademark scholarship and decided to keep building their idea. Today, Carrick and his team continue developing Sunflowr through another innovation program in Germany—all while Carrick pursues a second graduate certificate in Supply Chain Management.
The biggest takeaway? Carrick’s journey from feeling unsure of his place to realizing the value of his skills in an international business context. “I developed business skills I didn’t know I had, and now I’m a founding member of a new business,” he says. “None of this would have been possible without St. Lawrence’s experiential learning opportunities and my professor believing in me. I’m proud to represent St. Lawrence College internationally and will continue to do so as we work to make Sunflowr a success.”
As more learning opportunities become available to students, be sure to keep up with events on URSLC and new offerings through the St. Lawrence Experience Record (SER).