AKRON – Now that the first year of Young Entrepreneurs Academy is over at Tippecanoe Valley High School, with students “graduating” Tuesday, organizers see ways the program can be improved next time. YEA! is a nine-month program that guides high school students through the process of starting a real business, according to information from the Warsaw-Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce. The 2013-14 school year was the first for YEA! at Valley and in Kosciusko County. Facilitated by the Chamber of Commerce, the only other YEA! in Indiana is in Elkhart County. Normally, YEA! is an after-school program, but Valley’s was the first to be part of the school day. It met every Tuesday morning for about 1-1/2 hours as part of Valley’s government/economics/English course, taught by Melanie Mason and Jeff Shriver. Dr. Jeff Fawcett and Dr. Al Grossnickle, both of Grace College, served as instructors. Renea Salyer, WKChamber program manager for YEA! and Chamber Members Relation, welcomed students and their families to the YEA! commencement last night. She told those present that a lot was learned from this first year, the process has gotten easier and the program will be better next year. “It’s something that we are very excited to do next year and can’t wait to see what happens again, and the different types of businesses. Now we know what to expect at the semi-finals and how to do that a little bit differently. Teaching the kids how to make a network differently. So things we can do better – and I appreciate that we got to learn from each one of you on this,” she said. The TVHS seniors in the class presented their business plans to a panel of four investors March 14 at the high school. The students were in groups of one to four that made up 12 businesses. All 12 Valley businesses had the potential of getting capital from the investors, but only one team got to advance to the Saunders Scholarship Semi-Finals in Boca Raton, Fla., May 15 and 16. One team from each regional then advanced to nationals in Washington, D.C., at America’s Small Business Summit June 11 and 12. Mark Dobson, WKChamber president and CEO, served as the commencement speaker. He said the chamber had a board meeting today at which it talked about some of the initiatives new to the community. “Dr. Fawcett ... talked about how Grace is determined to create an entrepreneurial culture in Kosciusko County. And this initiative was one of the highlights he spoke about,” Dobson said. Valley students who participated in the first year of YEA! were part of something exciting, he said. “What you also probably didn’t think of, and maybe you’re thinking of it now, is that you were a part of an entrepreneurial initiative within Tippy Valley School. And this was the first time something like this has been tried,” Dobson said. He said the Valley students were part of a hands-on initiative. “This is new. We actually took something that the Young Entrepreneur Academy had in a can and said this was the way to deliver this, and you guys modified it and made it better because you made it a part of your day of learning. And that, for us, is very exciting,” he said. What the chamber learned from Valley’s program and students will be part of next year’s YEA! program, he stated. “So we’re very excited,” he said. “You really taught us a lot and we’re very, very happy to have learned this. We have now other chambers of commerce talking to Renea about how did you guys deliver this, how were you guys so successful and why did it work so well there. And others are going to start emulating what you guys have piloted for Kosciusko County.” Dobson then talked about the students’ business plans and how they can be used by the students later in life, if not now. After Dobson and Salyer presented certificates and bags to the students for their achievement, Grossnickle spoke briefly. “To all the students, we’re very proud of you,” he said. “You’ve got a lot going for you in the future.” Grossnickle said he wanted to leave the students with three things: work hard, take risks and dream. Salyer told the students, “When you go to interview for a job, put YEA on your resume. That speaks volumes to an employer. It speaks a lot about you and what you put yourself through in high school.”
