Anna Krauss & Adam Wise

It was freshman year and our economics class entered to a Junior Achievement volunteer ready to teach us about business ethics. Honestly, as 14 year old freshmen, we didn’t think business ethics to be terribly applicable to our everyday lives, and considered browsing our Facebooks to be a more pertinent option.

In hindsight, we’re both glad that we took this course. We can truly say that our JA class went beyond worksheets and textbooks. Our volunteer taught us about business ethics and making decisions, which translated into skills Anna and I still use today.

Come senior year, Anna serves as the Speech and Debate Team Captain and I the Speech Captain. Many of the conflicts we face as captains have the ability to impact the whole team, positively or negatively, depending on our decisions. When we are faced with these dilemmas, we can only help but think of what the volunteer taught us about problem solving. Our JA class taught us to consider each individual fairly, while also thinking about the good of the team. Being in a leadership position, we now have the abilities to make quick and thoughtful decisions that benefit those involved.

Our JA knowledge was recently put into use when a teacher kindly offered to donate some funds to our Speech and Debate program. After receiving the money, Adam and I had to decide what we were going to use it for. On one hand, we could use it to help subsidize our upcoming varsity team trip to Boston, where it would benefit the veteran members of our team. Conversely, we could use it to help fund buses to and from tournaments, helping the entire team. Both options were tempting, but in the end, we decided that the future of the team lies with the “younger generations.” JA’s business ethics class promoted foresight, which helped us make a decision that would benefit the team now, and in the future.

From freshmen year to present day, we both believe that JA’s course in business ethics has impacted us more than we originally foresaw (and more than the news that popped up in our Facebook feeds in 2009). As we move on to higher level education, we will continue to practice the ethics that JA taught us as we strive to become fair leaders, critical thinkers, and go-getters.

-Adam Wise & Anna Krauss, 12th grade George Washington High School

Western Union Supports JA Finance Park

Western Union has been a committed supporter of Junior Achievement Rocky Mountain for over 6 years, investing both time and treasure to equip Colorado young people with the knowledge and skills to manage their financial futures. Since 2007, nearly 100 Western Union employees have volunteered in 193 classrooms, inspiring and preparing 4,800 students to be fiscally responsible. In addition, the company has also contributed nearly half a million dollars to JA through corporate contributions and employee fundraising efforts. Most recently, Western Union is supporting financial literacy education by sponsoring JA’s newest program, JA Finance Park, presented by Great-West Great-Teachers, a program of Great West Financial.

JA is thrilled to welcome Scott Coad, Sr. Vice President of Finance, to our board of directors this year, and we have seen involvement soar under his leadership. Western Union employees will be participated in the JA Bowl-A-Thon on April 19^th and raised nearly $35,000, doubling what they raised last year! Western Union will also volunteer through a JA in a Day event at Fulton Elementary this spring!

JA looks forward to a long and mutually beneficial partnership with Western Union as we work together to empower more Colorado students to own their future economic success!

JA Volunteer Joy Hall

Think speaking in front of high school students is scary? Think again. Joy Hall from Wells Fargo has conquered this feat for five years, bringing her colleagues to volunteer with juniors at the Denver School of Science and Technology. The Wells Fargo employees take students through JA Success Skills lessons as training for a workplace internship. The students learn skills they will need in any work environment, such as teamwork, communication, and how to market themselves through a resume and interview. Each of the DSST juniors go through the Junior Achievement program and then head to their internship which is set up by their school coordinator, Kate Dresher.

“I had a remarkable time with the diverse group of 11th grade students at DSST helping them prepare for their next stage,” said Joy. “The students were very competitive, eager for instructions and extremely involved absorbing every statement.”

“We use the JA Success Skills program to train our students and are mentored by local businesses,” said Kate Dresher, Internship Director at DSST-Stapleton. “When I am told that Joy Hall and her Wells Fargo crew will be our adult teachers and mentors for the Skills training program, I am SO excited.  She has been involved with our interns for the past 5 years and has done an incredible job training and motivating our students.  Her “crew” is very supportive, entertaining and informative.  The thought that Joy and her colleagues devoted at least 10 hours over a two week period to work with the DSST students is wonderful.  Service, especially for high school students, is always greatly appreciated.”

Jamie Zhu, JA Ambassador

Like all teenagers at the age of 15, I was slightly irritated at the fact that my parents had dragged me to a summer camp that I was originally not interested in. However, my irritation was only temporary and most definitely forgotten by the end of the eventful week. Two years later, I realize that JA Business Week was the beginning of a new passion that I would not have discovered if I hadn’t encountered this program. I don’t know if it was the people, my love for communication, or just the environment in general, but I somehow fell in love with business and everything that comes with it.

The process of creating a marketing plan with a group of people is like no other experience. Extremely different from a school or research project, working with students my own age from all around the area was really an amazing opportunity. One of my favorite parts about the week was getting to work with real local businesses that I am familiar with. It was amazing to create our own Jamba Juice flavor and taste our different combinations. This is not to say, however, that we did not encounter any difficulties along the way, but even so, the challenges were all part of the fun.

Since JA Business Week, I’ve been pursuing my business passions by creating my own small business, trying to get as much experience as I can, and becoming a JA Ambassador. I hope that in the future, I’ll be able to inspire young entrepreneurs to take a step into the business world and to take advantage of all opportunities and unique experiences that it has to offer.

-Jamie Zhu, JA Ambassador

Applications to JA Business Week are being accepted now through May 3, 2013!  Click here to learn more about getting involved as a JA Business Week student or volunteer.

Our volunteers are at the heart of everything we do! Without the dedication and support of all of our volunteers, we would not be able to bring financial literacy, entrepreneurship and work readiness education to students all across Colorado.

National Volunteer Week commemorates volunteers throughout the United States, honoring the people who dedicate themselves to taking action and solving problems in their communities. We hope you will join Junior Achievement in saying “Thank You!” to our outstanding JA volunteers!

We invite you to read about some of our outstanding volunteers:

Frank Pulley
Jose Amaya
Leroy Holm
Tom Bolin
Paul Natale
Adam Wise
Joe Acker
Jim Crompton

Each guest will be entered into a drawing to win great prizes, including a dinner for 10 to Del Frisco’s. (Drawing takes place at 6:00 p.m. You must be present to win.) Stay for dinner and 10% of your bill will be donated back to JA!

Please RSVP by May 1st to 303-260-6286 or SRobbins@JAColroado.org.

Now, consumers of any age have an opportunity to participate in the fifth annual Money Smart Colorado, a week-long public awareness campaign around personal finances. From April 20 to 27, financial institutions, businesses, schools, libraries and other organizations around the state will team together to offer a variety of activities to help consumers increase their knowledge and confidence about their personal finances. Topics include:

• Budgeting and Financial Planning
• College Financing
• Credit and Debit Management
• Health Insurance and Medical Planning
• Saving and Investing
• Tax Education

“There are many organizations and individuals out there who understand that we really need to jump start our financial education in the United States” says Stacee Montague, public affairs director for the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, Denver Branch, which is a fifth year Money Smart Colorado partner. “By starting at home and highlighting all of our efforts in one week we hope to let the people of Colorado know that resources are available to help them learn more about their personal financial any time during the year.”

The goal of Money Smart Colorado is to provide workshops, seminars, programs, events and resources to help families, students, homeowners, businesspersons, employees and other community members expand their opportunities through improved financial understanding. Most events are free, offer unbiased financial education and are offered across the state of Colorado. Already, 73 partners have agreed to offer over 170 events statewide, as well as information and promotional resources to raise awareness of the importance of financial literacy education and the tools and resources available. Events and partners are listed at www.moneysmartcolorado.org.

“Money Smart Colorado offers learning opportunities and resources for everyone, regardless of geography, age or financial situation,” says CJ Juleff, executive director of the Colorado Jump$tart Coalition. “Most of us could benefit from a better understanding of our own financial situation.”

Money Smart Colorado is coordinated by the Colorado Jump$tart Coalition for personal financial literacy, a nonprofit coalition created to help Coloradans of all ages improve their level of financial literacy.  Junior Achievement-Rocky Mountain, Inc. is a founding member of the Colorado Jump$tart Coalition and a Money Smart Colorado Week partner.  For more about Money Smart Colorado, including a complete listing of state-wide events, visit www.MoneySmartColorado.org. 

Junior Achievement-Rocky Mountain, Inc. has received a $15,000 grant to support its entrepreneurship programs in local schools. Sam’s Club presented the grant in support of its focus on youth entrepreneurship education.

“Knowledge of the free enterprise system, its benefits to citizens and its relationship to job creation is important for our young people,” commented Robin Wise, president and CEO of Junior Achievement-Rocky Mountain, Inc. “With the help of partners like Sam’s Club, Junior Achievement can expand its reach into even more classrooms with our life-changing programs.”

A 2011 survey, commissioned by Junior Achievement and the U.S. National Chamber Foundation, confirmed the need for and value in providing entrepreneurship education for students.  At least nine in 10 high school juniors believe it is important to be taught about entrepreneurship, free enterprise and capitalism, yet less than half (45 percent) have been taught about entrepreneurship in school and 57 percent have been taught about free enterprise in school.