Last Friday marked the kick off of the School of Information Studies latest awesome opportunity: the 140 Challenge. The contest presents five iSchool students with the chance to win a trip to speak at the 140 Characters Conference in New York City this June.

This global conference brings people from all industries together to discuss how technologies, specifically social media outlets, are changing the way people work and communicate.

Previous speakers include David Carr, my personal idol and New York Times writer, and Jack Dorsey, co-founder and chairman of Twitter. This year, a Syracuse University student will speak alongside the likes of similar top-notch social media mavericks that are the best in their respective industries. Jealous? I am, too.

The five contestants are current iSchool students and will take turns speaking during February and March to vie for a spot at the New York City conference. Steve Rhinehart (@cusebarista) was the first to tackle the challenge, speaking this past Friday at the 140 Challenge kick off. Sam Morrison (@SamTheCobra), will speak this Friday, followed by Isaac Budmen (@ibudmen) on March 2, Gabriel Muger (@gmugar) on March 23 and Alyssa Henry (@AlyssaHenry) on March 30.

At noon on each of the presentation dates, competitors will take the stairs in the iCafe in Hinds Halland speak on his or her chosen topic.

On March 30,videos of each presentation will be posted to the #140cuse website, alongside an online voting poll to let students weigh in on who they think is most deserving of the 140 NYC spot. Other judges include the #140cuse team and Jeff Pulver, the founder of the 140 Characters Conference.

Each of the five students will discuss how some aspect of social media has affected them as students, as professionals and as people.

Henry, an iSchool graduate student pursuing her master’s degree in information management, plans to speak about how Twitter has enabled her to build a personal brand and identify and pursue opportunities in a unique way.

‘Speaking at the 140 conference would be a dream come true for me,’ Henry said. ‘The 140 conference brings together a community that is passionate about all the things I’m passionate about, and to have even a small chance to share my story with so many people is amazing.’

Morrison sees the competition as not only an exceptional opportunity to speak at 140 NYC, but also as a way to further his quest for his own brand and online identity. The junior information management major recently found Internet stardom via his YouTube sensation, One Backflip A Day. For Morrison, the opportunity could help him keep up with his growing following.

‘This summer, I plan on traveling the world and doing backflips at cool landmarks around the globe,’ he said. ‘I think speaking at 140 Challenge, and hopefully 140 NYC, will be a great way for me to get the exposure I need to pull off this project.’

If you can only spare one or two of your precious Fridays, it’s worth mentioning that Pulver will be in attendance at the March 2 presentation. Yes, eating pizza and rubbing shoulders with a member of the social media elite in the same room is possible. I was shocked, too.

Once the dust settles, the dropped jaws realign themselves and the votes are tallied, the victor shall emerge, rewarded with a speaker spot at 140 NYC from June 19-20. If you’re anything like me, a former ‘The Sims’ aficionado, you’re as pumped as I am to see who gets booted off the island and wins a trip to Manhattan.

Jessica Smith is a senior information management and technology and television, radio and film dual major. Her column appears every Tuesday. She can be reached at [email protected].

Published on February 20, 2012 at 12:00 pm