Youth Practice Business-Building Skills
Jefferson Post
Friday, July 24, 2009
The Golden LEAF Foundation in 2007 funded the “Building REAL Interest in Developing Greater Entrepreneurial Systems” (BRIDGES) program through a $200,000 grant made to NC REAL Enterprises.
The grant, written through Wilkes Community College and the NWNC Advanced Materials Cluster, was to support the development of entrepreneurial skills in Ashe, Alleghany and Wilkes counties through working with teachers and youth.
As a result of the grant: 70 teachers attended workshops in building entrepreneurial skills within the school curriculum; 11 teachers attended a facilitator training; three attended Entrepreneurship Camp Training and five attended the K-8 REAL Institute training that provided professional development training for teachers in developing entrepreneurial skills and talent in the K-8 grades. The grant also provided an opportunity for teachers to develop online lesson plan s for publication on LEARN NC. Ashe County teachers participated in the online curriculum development and all other training opportunities.
During the week of July 10, a culminating event for the BRIDGES program was an Entrepreneur Youth Camp for rising 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th graders held at the Ashe Campus of WCC. The camp, directed by the Education Committee of the Chamber of Commerce and NC Cooperative Extension Ashe County 4-H, provided the opportunity for 20 Ashe students to practice their skills in developing businesses.
The curriculum was based on the NC REAL program (North Carolina Rural Entrepreneurship through Action Learning) and instructors Jennifer Miller, Extension Agent, 4-H and Scott Ballard with the Chamber, participated with NC REAL coordinator Arlene Childers. One of the cornerstones of the REAL program is the “Experience-Application-Expansion-Reflection” activities designed to guide students through the process of researching, planning and running a small business.
The 20 students worked in four teams and developed presentations of possible businesses for Ashe County. A number of awards were presented by the local judges panel, including Most Cooperative Team Effort to the Green Roof Buffet, Best Enterprises to The Pet & People Hair Salon, the Most Feasible Business to Skate Max, and the award for Most Creative Presentation went to Sunny’s Pool & Spa. During the week, the youth enjoyed business leaders such as Brian Crutchfield, with Blue Ridge Electric, sharing opportunities in “green business development”, Bob Washburn, with AF Bank, and Dick Miller, with First Citizens Bank speaking on the importance of having a business plan before starting a business.
The organizers of the camp would like to thank all the parents and those from the community who participated as bankers, shoppers, and guest speakers. IN addition to the Golden LEAF funds available for the entrepreneur camp, a number of sponsors made enhancements possible for the students’ experience, including: Advantage West, American Emergency Vehicles (AEV), Ashe Chamber of Commerce, Ashe County Government, Ashe County Schools, Blue Ridge Electric, North Carolina Cooperative Extension, Ashe County 4-h, Fifth-Third Bank, GE Aviation, Glendale Springs Presbyterian Church, NC REAL Enterprises, Northwest NC Advanced Materials Cluster and Wilkes Community College – Ashe Campus.