National Youth Entrepreneurs program expands to Montana
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News from Youth Entrepreneurs
HELENA – Youth Entrepreneurs (YE), a nationwide organization dedicated to teaching entrepreneurship skills to high school students, will launch in Montana in time for the next school year.
The program is completely funded by private donors, including a gift from Whitefish philanthropist and entrepreneur Michael Goguen, among others. “The power of philanthropy for positive change is enormous. To have entrepreneurs of this caliber invested in this initiative is remarkable,” said Liz Marchi, who is leading the YE initiative in Montana.
In partnership with Montana Chamber Foundation and One Montana, YE was introduced to a group of 40 educators and entrepreneurs from around the state at a Bozeman event at the end of February. Following the event, the teachers were eager to incorporate this program into their classrooms.
The program uses an interactive curriculum to teach market principles, risk analysis, disruption and problem solving in a classroom setting. The skills gained can be applied to both markets and social problems, and gives students a glimpse into careers and opportunities they might not otherwise have thought about or pursued.
“We are so excited to be able to expand on the great work that is already being done in the area of teen entrepreneurship programs in Montana to reach even more students in more schools around the state. By focusing on small communities, we hope that we can give kids a taste of business and entrepreneurship that exists within their communities as well as a little farther away. Ultimately, we hope that students will use their experiences and the skills they learn to solve problems within their communities,” said Liz Marchi, who is leading the YE initiative in Montana.
The program is set to launch in six pilot schools around the state this fall, with plans to grow exponentially into more schools over the next several years. YE will work within the Montana Office of Public instruction (OPI) curriculum protocols and is one of the new program initiatives under the Entrepreneurship section of the Montana Chamber’s Envision 2026 Plan.
You can learn more about YE at www.youthentrepreneurs.org. For more information about YE, contact Liz Marchi at liz@lizmarchi.com.
