December 2008 No matter which holiday you choose to celebrate this month, may it be filled with joy and love.
Thank you for giving
JA so many things
to celebrate this semester.
Wishing you and your family |
Eat Pizza,
Support JA
Hosting a holiday party?
Planning for an upcoming staff meeting?
Need to feed lots for little money?
Order from Papa John's catering menu and as much as $8 will go directly to
JA of Middle Tennessee.
Click here for menu.
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Opportunities for Exploration
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Buzz of the Biz
Henry Ford and Thomas Edison reunite in JA BizTown
JA President Trent Klingensmith with Dave LeBreux of Ford and Aaron, Thomas Edison's JA BizTown Mayor.
For some
people, seeing Ford automobiles driving down the highway might not immediately
conjure up thoughts of education, running a business, or voting for mayor.
However, for the fifth-
grade students at Thomas Edison Elementary in Antioch, Ford is the
reason they got the chance to exactly that.
Ford
Motor Company's Nashville
office funded the opportunity for Thomas Edison's fifth graders to attend JA BizTown. Ford's
partner-
ship with JA provided 110 students the chance to
visit JA BizTown.
Dec. 5 was officially proclaimed Ford Motor Company Day in JA
BizTown. Dave LeBreux, an employee of Ford and a member of JA's Board of
Directors, was on hand to announce the sponsor-
ship. LeBreux also received a key
to JA BizTown from the town's mayor, a fifth-grade student, elected by his
peers at Thomas Edison to serve JA BizTown.
Historically,
Henry Ford and Thomas Edison were associates and friends. Ford credited Edison for the encouragement to mass-produce auto-
mobiles.
This former friendship was reignited by Ford Motor Company's sponsorship of the
namesake school in JA BizTown, inspiring a new generation of entrepreneurs.
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Opportunities for Recognition
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2008
Holiday
Design-a-Card
contest winner: Congratulations to
Faith Lin, a 2nd-grader at Hickman Elementary
for submitting the winning design.
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JA says
"Thank
You"to
the following sponsors for their generous support!
Caterpillar Financial Services for their sponsorship of the 8th Annual Inspire & Admire Breakfast.
Ford Motor Company for their sponsorship of Thomas Edison Elementary's day in JA BizTown.
Sam
Belk
Wells
Fargo
Julian
Bibb
Stites & Harbison
Denis
Blackwelder
Barge, Waggoner, Sumner
& Cannon
The Bradford Family Foundation
Lucy
Carter
Carter Lankford CPAs
W. Mark
Dixon
USr Healthcare
Tom
Frautschy
CAT
Raymond
Hensler
Corner Realty Partners
Dave
Olender
Gaylord Entertainment
Randy
Shepard
Regions
Marvin
Shotts
Square D
Jimmy
Spradley
Standard Candy Company
T & T Family Foundation
The Washington Foundation
Larry
Whisenant
Pinnacle Financial
Partners
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JA Staff
Operations
Trent Klingensmith
President
Rachel Dyer
Director of Operations
Marketing
Beth Torres
VP, Events & Funding Development
Laura Lovell
Special Events Manager
Jessica Bowers
Marketing Associate
Betsy Burkett
Executive/Marketing Assistant
Programs
Andy Schenck
Director of Programs
Caroline Bizot
Programs Manager
Karen Boom
Program Manager
Holly Houston
Programs Manager
Charlisa Pugh
Program Manager, Job Shadow
Elizabeth Robertson
Programs Assistant
JA BizTown
Rachel Dyer
Director of JA BizTown
Leona Cherry
Instructional Manager
Lisa Erdman
Instructional Manager
Freya Hearn
Instructional Manager
Bethany Wynns
Instructional Manager
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About JA
We believe in
passion
for what we do and honesty, integrity and excellence in how we do it. |
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Inside the President's Corner
with
Trent Klingensmith
Dear JA Supporters:
I am
always moved this time
of year to see the community come together to find ways to give back to others.
Through projects sponsored by your churches, schools, and other organizations,
there are so many ways to support those in need and so many people willing to get involved.
This weekend, my family and friends will gather to give food to some of those
very people.
I am
also inspired by all that you do for the young people of Middle Tennessee. Thank
you for your involvement in the lives of students through JA, whether you are a
volunteer giving up your personal time each week to teach a JA class or you are
a teacher opening your classroom for a JA program. What you do is so important
to their young lives.
Now
is such an important time to use these current events to reinforce what JA
teaches in the classroom. It's our
responsibility to help our kids understand what is happening with the
economy and JA can
offer the explanations. During this
season, we have the perfect opportunity to have conversations with
our kids about the importance of money management, ethics, financial responsibility, and
spending priorities. These topics don't just
have to be addressed in the classrooms. They can become open dialogues you have
with your children at the dinner table, riding in the car to school, or while at
the grocery store.
I
understand that sometimes these conversations can be scary, even as an adult.
Young people
have questions-even adults have questions! But JA has the answer. JA trains all our volunteers on all these topics before
putting them in the classrooms. Once you have the knowledge, you can share it
with students in a classroom and the young people in your life.
What
you all do for JA is so important, especially in these shaky times. Thank you
for your committed passion, dedication, and knowledge that you share with the
students you reach by sharing the
Junior Achievement
message.
Happy Holidays,
Trent Klingensmith
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Opportunities for Appreciation
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JA's 8th-annual Inspire & Admire Breakfast honors Nashville businesses
Stephanie Valdez-Streaty accepts a recognition award on behalf of Nissan at the JA Inspire & Admire Breakfast.
Fourteen Nashville companies were
honored for their dedication to and support of the communities in which they
live and work. Junior Achievement of Middle Tennessee's 8th-annual
Inspire and Admire Breakfast, held Dec. 9 at Loew's Vanderbilt Hotel, paid
tribute to the good works these companies do to improve the education of Middle
Tennessee's children. The event rasied more $51,000 for JA programming.
Among the
companies honored at the event were Bridgestone Americas Holding, Caterpillar
Financial Services, Comdata, Curb Records, Deloitte, Ernst and Young and Ford
Motor Credit. Franklin American Mortgage, Gaylord Entertainment Company, HCA,
Ingram Industries, Nissan, Square D/Schneider Electric and Standard Candy
Company also received recognition. These companies support JA through financial
contributions, event participation and with volunteer hours.
Chaired by Kate
Herman of the Nashville Business Journal and
hosted by Caterpillar Financial Services, the event featured inspiring messages
from volunteers, teachers, students and a representative from Metro Nashville
Public Schools. Kate and Corinne Olund, a 6th-grader, emceed the event.
Kelly Henderson,
the career and technology education coordinator for MNPS, said this of the host
organization, "Junior Achievement takes our students from what is to what could
be and opens their mind to a world full of possibilities."
Jackson Harris, a 3rd-grade student, spoke at the event too. "Thanks to JA," he said, "I can see what kind of businessperson I want to be someday."
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What others have to say
about JA:
"This semester I taught Mrs. Figueredo's 3rd grade
class at Carter Lawrence Elementary. The course consisted of all females and
was very interesting to say the least. One of the best parts of the course was
that I taught the girls an approach I use everyday for being positive.
What I
do is keep a list of 31 positive words in my back pocket, as a reminder, and
when someone asks me what I call the Magic Question, "How are you today", I
respond using one of these words, such as FANTASTIC. Because I have to focus on
this positive word throughout the day, I almost always have a positive day.
Once I shared this with the girls they thought it was a great idea. In fact, on
my last day of class they couldn't wait for me to ask them the Magic Question.
Once I did, they gave me a multitude of positive responses. It was FABULOUS.
The kids, with the help of their teacher and a thesaurus, had made their own
personal list of positive words that they could use for the Magic Question. It
was great to be a true POSITIVE influence in the lives of these
children."
--Dustin Adkison
volunteer
"One of the students 'was inspired by JA' ...and started her own newspaper."
--Melinda Finaly
volunteer
"[The students] enjoyed all the hands-on [activities] and understood the concepts, which followed Metro Standards."
"One student...wants to be in the technology field when he grows up."
--LaVergne Grayvolunteer
"It was truly rewarding."
--Billy Block
volunteer
"[The] presentation fit perfectly into our curriculum, and was an extension to our Community/Citizenship unit and Elections unit. It's also nice for our students to see volunteers helping in our community."
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Opportunities for Education
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Attention Employers:
Ever wondered how you could influence our
future work force? -
Do you know kids who are unrealistic about the world of
work? Are you concerned that your career may become a dying
breed?
Then Junior Achievement of Middle Tennessee has
the answer for you!
Sign up for JA Groundhog
Job Shadow Day. Our goal is to match 700 deserving young people all
across the region with companies and organizations wishing to make a
difference.
Please contact Charlisa Pugh via email or at 615.627.1197
for more information.
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Ford employees drive JA in a Day at local elementary schools
Thanks to the employees at Ford Motor Credit company,
two local elementary schools were able to experience the fun and learning that
comes from our JA programs. Poplar Grove in Williamson Co. and Paragon Mills
in Davidson Co. hosted JA in a Day recently for 1st, 2nd, and 4th graders.
Twenty Ford employees taught the 2nd
and 4th grade students at Poplar Grove, while ten volunteers took over the 1st grade at Paragon Mills. These volunteers took nearly 4 hours out of
their work day to teach JA programs to the students.
Thanks to the employees of Ford Motor Credit company, nearly 175 young students in Middle Tennessee were able to learn about their families, their communities, and their regions through JA in a Day.
If your company would like to volunteer to teach JA programs but seems strapped for time, consider getting involved in JA in a
Day. For more information, please contact the JA Programs Department.
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DEADLINE: Feb. 1, 2009
2009 Comdata Scholarship Program
Comdata® Corporation and Junior Achievement® of Middle Tennessee
Comdata®
Corporation and Junior Achievement® of Middle Tennessee are pleased to
announce the inaugural Comdata Scholarship Program for 2009.
The
scholarship will be awarded to up to ten graduating high school seniors
in the Middle Tennessee area.
For more information and scholarship application, click here.
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Opportunities for Donation
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2009 Bowling on the High Seas
Ahoy, matey! We are Bowling on the High Seas on March 24
& 26-29, 2009. Start organizing your teams for the best Bowl-a-Thon yet!
Interested in coordinating the Bowl-a-Thon for your company?
Mark your calendars for a come-and-go event kick-off on January 22nd
from 8:00 until 10:30 at the JA offices. Email Laura Lovell for more details and
information.
Many thanks to the 1,875 bowlers who took part in the 2008
Hoe Down Bowl Down! The Fall Bowl-a-Thon was completed last week; welcome new
Bowl-a-Thon participants First Tennessee Bank in Rutherford
County and Nissan in Williamson County.
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