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Derrius Quarles Returns to Chicago as Scholarship Startup Vies for $200K

 Kenwood Academy graduate Derrius Quarles returns to Chicago Thursday to compete for a $200,000 prize for his startup.
Kenwood Academy graduate Derrius Quarles returns to Chicago Thursday to compete for a $200,000 prize for his startup.
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Million Dollar Scholar Facebook

THE LOOP — Kenwood Academy alumnus Derrius Quarles has returned to Chicago a few times since he left in 2009 to get a sociology degree at Morehouse College in Atlanta.

His first few return visits were to lead seminars on how to find and win college scholarships, sharing tips he learned when he spent his own junior and senior year accruing over $1.1 million in scholarships and financial aid.

Since he graduated in 2013, Quarles has come up from his current home in New Orleans for stops at Kenwood, King College Prep, South Shore, Harper and more high schools to talk about his book "Million Dollar Scholar" and give advice to students and their families.

But on Thursday he's coming to the city to do that other thing he does best — raise money to fund another ambitious goal. This time, it's Million Dollar Scholar: the tech education company.

"In my own experience, I found that a multitude of students weren't receiving any formal education in their school, or at home, about how to apply for scholarships," Quarles said.

When he began visiting schools in Chicago and "providing the information for free, and seeing how in demand it was ... [parents and administrators] wanted the information in one place, and said, 'We'd pay you for that resource,' he explained.

"Once somebody says they'll pay you for something, it's worth pursuing," the 24-year-old entrepreneur said.

So he and his friend and classmate Ras Asan built a business plan while at Morehouse for an online scholarship resource that combines aids such as resume templates with tracking tools, and services such as interview and essay coaching.

They hope to charge $75 per year for access and partner with schools and school districts for large-scale subscriptions.

On Thursday, Quarles will join four other finalist teams at MillerCoors Corporate Headquarters at 250 S. Wacker Dr. to see who will be awarded the $200,000 Miller Lite Tap the Future investment prize.

Million Dollar Scholar qualified at the competition's live-pitch event in Miami, where they also won a $20,000 prize to help fund the earliest stages of their business idea's development.

Quarles and Asan also won $25,000 last year from the Tavis Smiley and University of Maryland's Social Innovation Challenge.

Quarles said winning on Thursday would "really accelerate everything that we're doing as a company and ensure that we can get to those students who are in need a lot faster, and give them a great product."

"We already have some early customers, but it would really accelerate our ability to grow our customer base and to serve the students who need this content we're providing to them. It would mean a tremendous amount for us to win."

And, not one to miss an opportunity, Quarles has another pitch he hopes will catch some attention while he's in Chicago this week.

"I think CPS, just like many other school systems, can definitely do a lot more — the data shows that they can do a lot more — to help students graduate, having at least made a grand attempt to ensure that they have this knowledge before they leave," Quarles said.

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