Cafés, breweries, and nail salons. Construction trades, aviation, and industry. Biotech, health tech, and software. Every kind of business this valley actually runs on belongs on this stage — and one Contra Costa Community College District class, credit or not, makes you eligible.
A short written application, a deck, and an optional 1-minute video. No prior experience required — just current 4CD enrollment.
Selected by the screening panel and notified no later than Nov 6, opening a full two-week mentoring window before the final.
Three minutes to pitch, two minutes of judges' questions. Cash prizes, audience vote, and reception.
This is a 4CD competition. If you are enrolled in a Contra Costa Community College District course — any course, at any of our colleges — you are eligible to apply.
For the past several years, the Contra Costa Community College District has hosted an annual Business Pitch Competition at DVC's Pleasant Hill campus — student founders sharing ventures spanning wellness tech, food sustainability, hardware, and student support. Past winners have gone on to pilot with Contra Costa County agencies and BART.
For 2026 we've widened the door without leaving the district. Community members are welcome to compete — they just have to be enrolled in a 4CD class. That includes non-credit Community Education courses: a ceramics class, a QuickBooks workshop, an ESL course, a welding certificate. One class is enough. Enroll, then apply.
There are no tracks and no categories. Students, dual-enrolled high schoolers, and community members in a non-credit class all fill out the same form and stand on the same stage. What we are actively recruiting is range — see the room we're trying to build.
We are not auditioning to be the other valley. We are cafés, breweries, bakeries, and nail salons. We are aviation and industry out past the airfield. We are biotech and health tech in the labs. And we are construction trades — a lot of construction trades.
That's the economy people here actually work in, so that's the room we want on this stage. There is no venture-scale requirement and no technical co-founder required. A framing contractor with a hiring plan is a business. A second bakery location is a business. Bring the software too — just don't assume it has a head start. It doesn't.
No separate tracks, no beginner bracket, no category handicap. A nail salon expansion and an AI product go into the same pile, in front of the same panel, scored against the same five criteria.
The form goes live. Start a draft, save it, come back. If you're not enrolled in a 4CD class yet, this is the window to sign up for one — including any non-credit Community Education course.
Submit a short written application, a deck (PDF or slides link), and an optional 1-minute video by 12:00pm PT on Monday, Nov 2. Late submissions are not accepted; the screening panel begins review that afternoon.
Each application is reviewed by two members of a multi-person screening panel; highest-scoring teams advance. We aim to notify finalists Thursday, Nov 5, and commit to no later than Friday, Nov 6, so every team gets the full mentoring window. Finalists submit a final-draft deck and an optional 1-minute public YouTube video.
The mentoring window now opens two weeks ahead of the final. Finalists are paired with mentors and given deck reviews, pitch coaching, financial-model review, and dry-run sessions — with Main Street teams matched to operators and lenders, not just startup advisors. Optional drop-in office hours every weekday evening at the DVC business department.
Three minutes to pitch, two minutes of Q&A. Audience vote runs throughout. Winners announced live; reception immediately following with judges, mentors, and the district's founder and small-business community.
Cash prize, on-stage recognition, and an introduction round to local investors, lenders, and small-business advisors.
Cash prize and continued mentor matching post-event.
Cash prize and recognition.
Live audience vote during the final. Open to all finalists.
Prize amounts shown reflect the 2025 finals; the 2026 districtwide edition will scale prizes to the expanded field. Final amounts confirmed when finalists are named.
2026 panel announced in October.
One rubric for everyone. A neighborhood service business and an AI product are scored against the same five criteria — no category is graded on a curve, and no judge is asked to weigh "scalability" against a business meant to serve one town well.
Anonymous, QR-code based wellness survey giving organizations real-time insight into mental health trends while protecting individual privacy. Now piloting at the county and BART level.
Helping restaurants reduce food waste by selling surplus meals at affordable prices. Founded by a dual-enrolled DVC student and Northgate High School junior.
Helping community college students track scholarships, internships, and coursework as they prepare to transfer. Prize money funded a scholarship for underrepresented transfer students.
A voice-activated wristband focused on calm, family-centered safety alerts. Selected by audience vote on the night of the competition.
Scholarships, internships, coursework tracking, and essay help for community college students.
A platform connecting talented teens with freelance opportunities.
Investment coaching for young adults.
Diverse plush dolls empowering children to embrace their heritage.
An app that detects scam calls, messages, and emails.
Software enhancing triage accuracy with integrated patient histories.
A wristband that buzzes until you complete tasks in the app.
Keychain accessory promoting healthy habits and goal progress.
Clothing brand merging UAE heritage with California style.
A tool for easily converting owned books to audio.
Anyone currently enrolled in a Contra Costa Community College District course. That's the only eligibility bar: one active enrollment at DVC, Contra Costa College, or Los Medanos College. Credit students, dual-enrolled high school students, and community members in a non-credit class all use the same application — there are no separate tracks. There are no citizenship or status requirements.
Yes — enroll in a class and you're eligible. It does not have to be a business class, a full course load, or a credit course. A single non-credit Community Education class counts: cooking, ceramics, computer basics, ESL, QuickBooks, welding, yoga. Register for one 4CD course, keep the enrollment active through Nov 19, and you can apply.
It does. Non-credit Community Education enrollment carries exactly the same eligibility as a credit course. We ask for your student ID on the application so we can verify enrollment — nothing more.
It's more than a fit — it's the point. We are actively recruiting Main Street: restaurants, food trucks, salons, landscaping and trades, childcare, retail, cleaning, bookkeeping, repair shops. Brick-and-mortar and service businesses compete on the same stage, in front of the same judges, against the same five scoring criteria as the software and AI teams. You do not need a technical co-founder, a prototype, or a growth chart.
No. We accept ventures at any stage — from a single-slide concept to a registered LLC with revenue. Judging weighs originality, clarity, and potential impact more heavily than current traction, especially for early-stage teams.
Yes. Teams of 1–4 are welcome. List every team member on the application; only listed members are eligible to present on stage.
A short written form (problem, solution, customer, what's different), your 4CD student ID for enrollment verification, a pitch deck submitted as a PDF or shareable slide link, and an optional 1-minute video introducing the team. Everything is due by noon on Monday, Nov 2. Finalists then submit a final-draft deck and an optional 1-minute YouTube video.
The mentoring window is a full two weeks — it opens as soon as finalists are named (Nov 5, and no later than Nov 6) and runs to the final on Nov 19. Every finalist team is matched with one or more mentors drawn from 4CD business faculty, alumni founders, past judges, and working local operators. Support includes deck reviews, pitch coaching, financial-model feedback, and live dry-runs in the actual venue. Main Street teams are matched with people who have run storefronts and payrolls, not only startup advisors.
Yes. You retain 100% ownership of your venture, IP, and equity. The competition takes no equity, no fees, and no rights to your work. You grant us the right to use your name, logo, and pitch summary for promotional purposes only.
Yes — and we encourage it. The November 19 final is free to attend, and attendance requires no enrollment of any kind. Invite your family, your customers, your potential investors, and your skeptics. The audience vote is real.
Ask it in the Discord — that's the fastest way to reach the organizers, and odds are someone else was wondering the same thing. If you'd rather ask privately, email rbuckley@dvc.edu and we'll get back to you within two business days.
You don't have to wait for the deadline to start. The Discord is where applicants ask the organizers questions, find a co-founder, get a deck torn apart before a judge sees it, and hear about workshops and office hours first.
Whether you're 16 with an app idea or 46 with a lease you're ready to sign — this is the stage. One 4CD class is all it takes to be eligible, and any class counts. Apply once. We'll do the rest.
The application form isn't live yet. Join the Discord and we'll announce it there the moment it opens — well before the Nov 2 deadline.
