Junior Achievement 2011 May eNewsletter
Calling All Campers!
Junior Achievement offers a fast-paced weeklong summer camp for students going into 5th and 6th grades. The camp is focused on business, economics, and financial literacy. Have fun learning what it means to invent products, have a real job, and run a successful business in your community. Space is filling up quickly, so if you are interested visit our camps page and register online. If you have any questions, please contact Kelly Luedke, JA BizTown Summer Camp Director, at 619-682-5155 ext. 124.
Miracles Do Happen!
Friday the 13th was unlucky for some, but not for Painted Rock Elementary when they visited JA BizTown! San Diego Chargers player Marcus McNeill dropped by and set things abuzz!
Marcus McNeill's foundation Mack's Miracles is teaming up with Junior Achievement to get kids fit�physically and financially! This July, we�ll be joining Kaiser Permanente, SeaWorld, and many others for a fun-filled, physically fit weekend to promote healthy habits all around.
Marcus heard about JA BizTown and came by to see the town in action. He was so impressed with the young "adults for the day". We are so proud to partner with this local legend, and we�ll keep you posted on more events and collaborations still to come!
For more information on Mack�s Miracles, please visit http://macksmiracles.org
1st Annual Next Big Thing, Entrepreneur Showcase
You may ask, "Can high school students start and run real companies?" Yes! And they are incredible! Marcus McNeill joined us as a judge for the first annual JA Company Showcase, "The Next Big Thing". This exciting competition which culminated students' experience in JA's flagship Company Program. The program inspires high school students to become tomorrow's business leaders by teaching them the intricacies of how market dynamics affect a company's success or failure. They wrestle with decisions that impact profit, sales, and market shares and learn the nuances of running their own company!
The company Eco-Eventerprise from Harmonium won the award for "Most Outstanding Student Company of the Year", with their event-driven, eco-friendly project. The group meets at the Epicentre in Mira Mesa and is compromised of high school students from around San Diego.
All artwork was customized for each client and was created using recycled materials such as water bottles, cardboard, and newspaper.
The "Lightbulb Award" for most innovative product went to Say Whataat?! from Hoover High School.
AOBT from Clairemont High School was awarded the "Show Stopper Award" for best business presentation and booth.
Contorted of San Diego High � MVPA was given the "I want to Invest Award" for best business plan.
A special thank you to our judges, keynote speaker Katy Goshtasbi of Puris Image and to the Samuel & Katerine French Fund for underwriting this program.
2nd Annual Casino Night�Big Win for Kids!
When the doors opened at 6:00 pm, over 200 attendees were anxious and ready to engage in an evening full of food, fun, and prizes. This event was hosted by Junior Achievement's Community Development Advisory Group (CDAG), a group of volunteer community leaders who support JA's fundraising efforts.
Over $20,000 was raised in one night, allowing over 500 students to receive JA programs next year! A special thank-you goes to our title sponsor, Pala Band of Mission Indians. Also, many thanks to all table and prize sponsors, CDAG committee members, and all attendees for making this evening such a huge success. Your contributions, support, and attendance made this evening memorable for all and we hope to see you next year.
President Spotlight
A few thoughts from Joanne Pastula, JA President:
The term financial literacy is more than just a catchphrase: it implies understanding basic financial concepts plus having the ability and discipline to use this information to make wise financial decisions.
Junior Achievement begins teaching these financial concepts in elementary school, helping entire classrooms of youngsters distinguish between needs and wants (many grown-ups have a little trouble distinguishing between these two!), what it means to have a job, and how the community works.
Then in middle school, JA teaches workforce readiness and financial skills such as "good" and "bad" interest, budgeting, and how to balance a checkbook.
During the high school years, JA students learn about ethics and just how the economic system works, and they can become part of the JA Company Program.
The results? Students who have the JA experience are more likely to stay in school, attend college, and most importantly, understand the relevance of their education to real-life situations.
The need to educate our youth at all grade levels is critical. We invite you to join us by volunteering in a local classroom, making a financial contribution, and/or becoming a fan of JA on Facebook.
Thank you for your support!
Joanne
Board Spotlight
Bruce Breslau, Senior Vice President and Market Manager of Union Bank and longtime Junior Achievement board member, will be leaving our board of directors on June 30, 2011, the end of our fiscal year. Mr. Breslau served for several years as co-chair, very engaged Executive Committee member and was instrumental in leading the organization to new levels of achievement. His accomplishments include the purchase of JA's Free Enterprise Center and the creation of JA BizTown. Bruce sits on several other nonprofit boards and will continue to stay close to Junior Achievement through the ongoing support of Union Bank. Thank you Bruce for your many years of invaluable service to Junior Achievement.
Volunteer Spotlight
We appreciate our Volunteers!
Thank you, Sea World for helping us recognize our valued volunteers!
Fundraising Spotlight
Love those group-buying deals?
Spott.com change beginning to read � Love those group-buying deals? Well, JA and Spott.com have teamed up! For every subscriber via this link, JA gets $1, so get money-wise and do a good deed!
Spott.com differs from the other companies that follow the group-buying model�a portion of every purchase through them goes to charity, and JA was lucky enough to be selected the last two weeks of April!
We made such a good team that in just one week, JA helped Spott.com double their email subscribers while raising funds for us in the meantime. Check out Spott.com, and don�t forget that every email subscriber automatically gives JA $1. Save money on things you already do and foods you love to eat, and support a charity at the same time�now that�s a deal!
Information about Spott.com
Spott.com is a daily deal site offering instant discounts of up to 90% off local entertainment, services,
and restaurants. Spott is committed to helping unite and build communities through generosity and boosting local business.
Following the idea of group-giving, Spott automatically donates up to 50% of its proceeds to sponsored charities, allowing for higher donations with increased purchases.�Offering a twist on the ever popular group-buying model, customers are encouraged to sign up with Spott.com to increase the amount of donations given to charity, gain awareness in their community, and effortlessly give back. All the while, they will be rewarding themselves with great deals on fun things to do in San Diego.
Since its launch, the socially conscious online coupon site has participated heavily in fundraising functions and events for the San Diego community.
Learn more by visiting their website (www.Spott.com) or follow them on Facebook (www.facebook.com/spottdeals) or Twitter (www.twitter.com/spottdeals).
Party for a Purpose event at Eden in Hillcrest; Spott.com booth