Knightly News

Photo provided by YEA BR.

A desire to learn more about business and a love of books inspired a business model that earned Episcopal sophomore Kathy Hu $4,000 in startup funds. Kathy is a member of the Young Entrepreneurs Academy of Baton Rouge’s (YEABR) 2022 class. Since September, she and other area students have been mentored by local business leaders as students explore the road to entrepreneurship.

Kathy has always been a reader. She’s currently a member of two book clubs and knows well the challenges of organizing a group of fellow readers. After registering with well-known online book clubs, Kathy also knows the rewards of a platform that allows you to track your reads. With that in mind, she created Bookmarked. Kathy defines Bookmarked as an “easy to use website with a social media-like interface where you can connect with other readers through features such as community posts.” Kathy says unlike other apps that only allow you to track what you’ve read, Bookmarked offers online book club meetings, which solves the problems associated with coordinating in-person discussions. Bookmarked also allows users to create group profiles, track what they have read, earn rewards points and access book recommendations. Kathy recently presented her concept to a panel of judges at the YEA BR community pitch event. Now that she’s been awarded seed funding, she begins the work of building a website that will soon have book clubs chatting online.

Photo provided by YEA BR.

What did Kathy think of YEA BR? She learned a lot about business and herself. She says she realized how difficult it is to start a business and the tremendous amount of research required to write a successful business plan. Members of this year’s class were fortunate to attend in-person class sessions. Kathy values the new friendships she’s formed through the shared experience and the weekly meetings. The weekly meetings also provided Kathy and her classmates the opportunity to learn from professors and business leaders. She says it was exciting to get insight from these mentors. Kathy appreciates the opportunity that YEA BR provided to practice public speaking and to learn more about whether starting a business is a long-term career goal.

As far as recommending YEA BR to classmates, Kathy says interested students should try it out. “In high school, you should experience different things,” she says. Kathy certainly follows her own advice. She is an Episcopal Webster Scholar and participates in Mu Alpha Theta, Literary Rally, Science Club, Science Olympiad and wind ensemble. Her favorite subject is math, and she previously participated in the LSU Math Circle.  

Want to learn more about Bookmarked? Check out Kathy’s presentation to the YEA BR investor panel here. We wish Kathy the best of luck as she continues to explore the world of business. She is part of a group of Episcopal students who have successfully participated in YEA BR. Read more about past participants below.

Episcopal Entrepreneurs Earn Seed Funding through YEA BR

Student Entrepreneur Competes Nationally

Continuing the Tradition of Episcopal Entrepreneurship

The Episcopal School of Baton Rouge 2024-2025 application is now available! ​For more information on the application process, to schedule a tour, or learn more about the private school, contact us at [email protected] or 225-755-2685.