La Sierra University's Students In Free Enterprise team won the SIFE World Cup for the second time in six years. LSU was judged to be the top presenting team in the 2007 SIFE international competition in New York City, held Oct. 10 to 12.

"Our students represented the United States and La Sierra in an incredible way," says Randal Wisbey, president of La Sierra University. "I can't even begin to describe the sense of excitement that each of us felt as we watched our remarkable students in New York. They possess an ability to share with uncanny poise all that we as a university and church have learned about service, and our campus's determination to see the world transformed."

Finishing as first runner up to La Sierra was the team representing Canada, Memorial University of Newfoundland. The other two finalists represented Albania and Nigeria.

College students from around the globe came to America for the 27th annual Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) competition at the New York Hilton to determine this year's World Cup winner. University students from 44 nations presented reports on their activities to panels of judges made up of chief executive officers of major international corporations. Those CEOs assessed the projects, presentations, and written reports in choosing the World Cup winning team. La Sierra University represented the U.S. after besting higher profile universities such as the University of Arizona at the national competition this past May in Dallas.

"To be honored in this way when being compared to the best business students in the world is a tremendous accomplishment for our students who have worked so hard and endeavored to do truly important things in the global community," says Johnny Thomas, dean of the LSU School of Business. "La Sierra University students are concerned with solving the critical problems of their generation and are challenging the assumption that business cannot be a tool for making the world a better place."

"People can generally become skeptical about changing the world because too often we focus on the negatives," said Warren Sturt, a finance major at La Sierra University. "But my experience with SIFE and as a student here is just the opposite. When people have resources and knowledge at their disposal they can realize a more productive way of life and that theme is evident in all the work that we have done. No matter how much money you make, I guarantee you, nothing will fulfill your life more than helping people. I realized this year that life is more than just the bottom line—a message our SIFE Team shared with the world."

La Sierra University has a history of excellence in SIFE competition. They are a six-time national champion and won the World Cup in 2002. They are the only university to ever win the national title four consecutive years, putting together a string of successful appearances from 1994 to 1997.

"At La Sierra University, our diversity is an incredible strength upon which we can build," says John Razzouk, student president of the 2007 LSU SIFE team. "When we put students together from entirely different backgrounds, the potential for development of new ideas increases exponentially. This is what makes our SIFE team unique. We have individuals who can be entirely different from one another, but still share a common goal for their education to actually have meaning and purpose. And what better purpose is there for education than for it to be utilized in service to others."

"Students at La Sierra University learn everyday how to serve our communities. I think our strength in the SIFE competition grows out of the Christian values that are taught to us in the classroom," said Carrie Bryner, who is in the MBA program with an emphasis in marketing. "Our view of service has a global lens, and we apply these values to an entrepreneurial model to help others realize their potential."

More information on La Sierra University's SIFE team can be found at www.lasierra.edu/news/sife. Descriptions of the 2007 LSU SIFE team's projects can be seen at http://www.lasierra.edu/news/2007/may/sife_natl_chmps.html. Also, the SIFE students kept a blog with their thoughts and impressions of the World Cup event, which can be found at http://lsusifeworldcup.blogspot.com/. Streaming video of the final four presentations, as well as the announcement of the winners can be seen at www.pdcproductions.com/SIFE/WC2007.htm.