June 2013 Newsletter: Mac-OU INC Client News: "Coupon Wallet partners with local high school internship program"

Mac-OU INC on-site client Coupon Wallet’s Phil Kanaby and Christopher Papa are graduates of, and subsequent advocates for, the Utica Center for Mathematics, Science and Technology (UCMST) program. As a result, three high-school junior student interns from UCMST have spent the past three weeks at the incubator, under the tutelage of Coupon Wallet.

Zachary Brenz from Eisenhower High School and Andrew Venturini and Evan Agattas from Utica High School were all chosen, through a highly competitive selection process, to take part in the UCMST. This four-year program involves a half-day of English, social studies and elective coursework at the student’s respective high school with the other half-day spent at UCMST. Of the 225+ applications to UCMST, 75 are chosen based on academic record, performance on achievement and aptitude tests and a letter of intent. All UCMST courses are taught at an accelerated or Advanced Placement level by faculty members holding masters or specialist degrees.

Zachary has hopes of pursuing game development, while Andrew is interested in computer science and business and Evan in computer engineering. All three interns agreed on the abundant value of the three-week internship with Coupon Wallet, as they spent the first few days in business meetings, learning small business development, and the remainder of the time developing a game app for Android and iOS.

“We weren’t expecting to make a game or be exposed to small business development,” Evan says.

All UCMST students are required to participate in the Junior Internship Program, which has been recognized by the Michigan Department of Education. Applicable skills that students bring to the workforce include computer programming (C++), introductory calculus, statistics, biology, chemistry and physics, along with the necessary written and communication skills. Students gain first-hand knowledge on the reality of their anticipated career fields and learn professional conduct as modeled in the workplace.

Evan says this UCMST program is “preparing him for college,” Andrew states that it “changed his life” and Zachary adds “he would not have had as many valuable experiences if he had not been a part of it.”

Coupon Wallet is a marketing platform that was founded in October 2012 as a technological solution for the transition from paper coupons to a digital alternative. Coupon Wallet is an end-to-end digital coupon platform that includes managed marketing services and point-of-sale integration for the businesses. Coupon Wallet’s method of digital clearing allows businesses access to greater information about who is using their coupons and can draw marketing conclusions from this data to improve their ROI. Additionally, Coupon Wallet integrates with business loyalty programs and can deliver coupons to loyal customers.

For more information on Coupon Wallet, please visit couponwallet.com or contact Christopher at (800) 895-9242 or chris@couponwallet.com.