Junior Achievement-Rocky Mountain, Inc. (JA-Rocky Mountain) has won a 2014 MetLife Foundation “Sowing the Seeds of Entrepreneurship” Award, representing a grant of $10,000 for outstanding innovation and entrepreneurial approach to program development that enables youth to own their economic future.

The grant was awarded for the JA Matters campaign concept which will feature an online crowdsourcing platform to give JA students and supporters the opportunity to share why JA Matters to them and help them remain personally connected to the JA mission. The JA Matters campaign is scheduled to launch this fall.

Four JA operations worldwide, including JA-Rocky Mountain, won 2014 Sowing the Seeds of Entrepreneurship Awards, each to implement promising but untested innovative programs concepts.  The Sowing the Seeds of Entrepreneurship Award, introduced in 2011, is designed to provide ‘seed money’ for cutting edge ideas.

JA and MetLife Foundation have partnered for 14 years to cultivate the spirit of innovation across the global JA network of 123 countries and expand selected programs to generate greater impact on the young people they serve through annual awards.

Dennis White, CEO and president of MetLife Foundation says, ”Innovation and an entrepreneurial spirit are critical to achieving scale and increasing impact.  With their diverse programs, all of the award-winning JA operations exemplify these traits and demonstrate their value in making a difference in the lives of millions of young people looking to build a secure future. Congratulations to JA-Rocky Mountain, and all the 2014 award winners for their dedication and excellence.”

MetLife Foundation has been a JA Worldwide partner to support youth economic development since 1978 and at the local level supports JA through volunteer engagement and board leadership.