Opportunities for Exploration
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Students attend
JA BizTown
courtesy of Target
 Students from Lakeview Design Center
On May 14, over 125 students in the 5th
grade at Lakeview
Design Center
were able to cap off their JA BizTown studies with a trip to our facility. This was the first time they had participated,
and thanks to a grant from Target, this educational experience came at no cost to
the students!
Throughout the day, students put into practice the things they had
learned in school: writing checks, managing their time, working in a team, and
keeping track of their hard earned money.
They had jobs as varied as DJ at the radio station, teller at the bank,
CFO, and food manager in the restaurant.
Here's an article from the JA BizTown Newspaper the students produced:
JA Biztown is an awesome place, and
thing to learn about. It taught me more
about teamwork, business commitments, calmness, kindness, and more, while we
were learning about that, we were also learning how to write checks, deposit
tickets, and how to balance a checkbook.
Also, we learned how to record what we've bought or how much money we've
gave back. So, we've learned most of the
basics, and I've got the hang of what we're doing and learning.
By Chloe T.
We were glad they had fun and learned so much from their JA BizTown experience!
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Each day in JA BizTown, students write articles and publish their own newspapers. The school year has provided some great articles from Middle Tennessee's 5th graders. Here are a few samples of some of the stories as they appeared this spring:
We Need More
Recycling
I think this world needs more recycling. When we recycle we help our Earth stay
clean. Then we'll reduce global warming
and have a clean Earth. If we don't keep
it clean the Earth will get too hot and life won't exist on Earth. So I encourage you to start recycling
today. The fate of the world is in our
hands.
Carter,
Heritage
Elementary School
JA BizTown Acronym
What you do at...
Balance check
books
Inventory control
Zealous fun
Teamwork
Open checking
accounts
Write checks
Negotiate
Newspaper Reporter,
Gresham/Jones Homeschool Group
CEO - The hardest,
best job
Did you want to be the boss?
Well Abby S. hadn't thought of it but is great at it. She says, "It is stressful being the CEO
because everyone needs something and no ones ever sitting down." Abby takes charge and shows people that a
quality business means to be punctual, have a good attitude, and take pride in
their work. She works hard and trys her
best. Abby is fun and creative. She told me that besides being the CEO of the
Delivery Center she would be the DJ at the Radio
Station.
Newspaper Reporter,
Harpeth Hall School
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Jessica Luthy, JA Intern
As part of her course of study at Vanderbilt University, Jessica was required to select a Nashville organization for whom she was interested in serving as an intern. Jessica chose JA. She shares what she learned as a JA classroom volunteer and intern:
At the beginning of my internship at Junior Achievement of
Middle Tennessee, I really had no idea what I was
signing myself up for. I'd had no introduction to JA before, so,
to be honest, I was a little unfamiliar with JA when my internship began.
However, I quickly realized what an incredible organization JA is. The
passion both the staff and volunteers have for inspiring kids to dream big for
their future definitely rubbed off on me!
As an intern in the Marketing department, each day in the office brought me new experiences and projects to
work on. With the annual Bowl-a-Thon fundraiser approaching, I helped out with
the wide range of projects from pulling t-shirts, to organizing team information,
to even assembling cardboard pirate treasure chests! Who knew interning at JA sharpens
your hot glue-gunning skills? Because many events and projects were occurring
around the same time, I gained a lot of new experience, and with the help and
guidance of the JA Staff, I developed applicable new skills that will be extremely
useful in my future.
One of my favorite assignments I was given over the course
of the semester was to write a grant proposal. I really enjoyed this project
because, in drafting the proposal, not only did I get to practice a new,
succinct style of writing, but also, in researching facts and statistics, I
became increasingly familiar with the distinct culture of JA and specific
evidence of how JA is impacting the lives of students throughout Middle Tennessee.
I must say that by far my favorite and definitely
the most rewarding "assignment" during my internship was to teach a JA class. I
had such a blast teaching the 3rd graders at Glendale Elementary.
Witnessing first-hand how the students were enthusiastic, engaged, and excited
by each lesson truly inspired me to continue investing my time with JA. Knowing
the vast need for economic education for kids and how effectively JA inspires kids to reach their greatest potential, it was encouraging
to see how excited they were about the activities. And, ultimately, teaching
the class was a great reminder as to why the staff at JA works hard to put on
events like Bowl-a-Thon and the Golf Classic-it's all for the kids, and what a
worthy cause that is!
Throughout my time at JA this past semester, I learned so
much from the wonderful staff, from the students I taught, and from each new
experience. JA has given me so much more than I ever anticipated, and I really
thankful to everyone there for this experience! Even though my formal
internship has since ended, I am looking forward staying involved with Junior
Achievement in the future and many more JA classes to come! |
Opportunities for Recognition
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Generous Thanks!
JA says "Thank You"
to the following sponsors for their generous
support:
John Markham and Bank of America$12,500Thomas Hudson, Jr.,
and Family$5,000The Nashville Predators Foundation$1,700 |
About JA
JA believes in
the
boundless potential of young people.
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JA Staff
Operations
Trent Klingensmith
President
Rachel Dyer
Director of Operations
Patrice Godshalk
Administration & Operations Assistant
Marketing
Beth Torres
VP, Events & Funding Development
Laura Lovell
Special Events Manager
Jessica Bowers
Marketing Associate
Programs
Andy Schenck
Director of Programs
Karen Boom
Program Manager
Holly Houston
Program Manager
Allison Wright
Program 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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May 2009  Jim Jacobs, JA Board Intern from the Young Leaders Council of Nashville, taught "Our City" at Glendale Elementary.Thanks to all the teachers, volunteers, and donors who helped bring Junior Achievement into Middle Tennessee's classrooms during the 2008-2009 school year!
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Inside the President's Corner
with
Trent Klingensmith
Dear JA Supporters,
More than ever, there are demands on everyone's time. We are all very busy; many of us have never worked harder. Each person is given the same 24 hours, and it is up to us to decide how best to use them.
Knowing this, I am ever-inspired by the way JA volunteers choose to spend their time. This month, eight Nashville companies have taught 113 classes for 9 JA in a Day programs. That means more than 2,250 students have benefited from JA in the past few weeks!
Another inspiration to me is Suzanne Bingham, who reached a volunteer milestone on May 14. Suzanne completed her 100th JA class. For those of you that volunteer, you know this means she has been in the classroom more than 500 times! I would like to thank Suzanne for her dedication as well as Dave LeBreux, JA board member, and the Ford Motor Credit Company for creating an environment of volunteerism that allowed Suzanne to make such an impact in our community.
In January, we spotlighted Pam Wright and Wright Travel's contribution to JA to underwrite high school programming for the next three years. Pam wanted to experience one of these classes, so she taught a high school class on May 15. Ms. Mary York's AVID students at Hillwood High School in Nashville benefited from Pam's experience as a successful female business owner. The students discussed business ethics, workplace behavior, and success skills. Thank you to Pam for making time to inspire a new generation of future business leaders in our community.
As another school year ends, I'd like to say thank you to all 1,175 of you who volunteered your time this year to arm our young people with the tools and skills they will need to succeed in the workplace and in life.
Thank you again for all you do!
Sincerely,
Trent
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Opportunities for Donation
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Franklin American Mortgage Golf Classic presented by Gaylord
Entertainment
Join 200 business leaders at beautiful Gaylord Springs for a
first-class golf tournament benefiting JA on Friday, June 12th! Golfer
gift packages, high-level networking, and a great day on the course make this
one of the most exciting golf events in the southeast. Morning and afternoon
tee times are available.
For more information, visit JA's golf site or contact Laura Lovell.
We also need volunteers to watch for hole in ones and to help
make the afternoon round run smoothly! Contact Jessica Bowers to
sign up.
Donations Needed for High-Class Auction
JA's annual silent auction will be held on June 11th
at W.O. Smith School
of Music. More than 200 community leaders will be in attendance and we need
your help to gather items for this event. Donors will receive color logo
signage, mention in print pieces, and gift-in-kind documentation for their
donations. Contact Laura Lovell for more information on how you can support this effort!
Bowling on the High Seas
Awards Luncheon
 A team from Caterpillar Financial Services' Access division participates in the 2009 Bridgestone Americas Trust Fund Music City Bowl-a-Thon.
The team named themselves "Captain Hartono and
the Pink Pirate Girl Party".
Thank you to 1,500 bowlers from 40 companies who took part
in the 2009 Bowl-a-Thon! After three months of pirate jokes, door prizes, and
crazy costumes, the Bowl-a-Thon season is coming to an end. More than $185,000
has been raised for JA programming and the fundraising isn't over yet!
Company Coordinators and top bowlers will gather for lunch at
the JA offices on Wednesday, May 27th to celebrate the event's
success and be awarded for their hard work. Award winners will be announced in
the June edition of JA Insight. If you are a Company Coordinator and would like
to attend the luncheon, RSVP to Laura Lovell.
Missed your chance to bowl this spring? No worries--another ship will set sail in September! Look for more details on the Fall Bowl-a-Thon in future issues of the Insight.
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Opportunities for Education
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JA volunteer recognized for outstanding dedication
Suzanne Bingham and students in her 100th JA class.
In ten years of volunteering, one woman has single-handedly
inspired more than 2,000 elementary school students in the greater Nashville area. On May
14, that woman reached a milestone in volunteerism. Suzanne Bingham completed
her 100th JA class. That means she has been in front of a classroom
of students more than 500 times. She is the first JA of Middle Tennessee
supporter to achieve this level of volunteerism.
Suzanne was recognized for this achievement in front of Ms.
Gail Hillis's Kindergarten class at Nashville's Paragon Mills Elementary School
on May 14. Her coworkers from Ford Motor Credit Company and JA staff members
presented Suzanne with a crystal vase in recognition of her service to the
organization. One of Ms. Hillis's students handed flowers to her JA volunteer
in a heart-warming moment of thanks.
"I was completely surprised, yet thrilled, when Junior
Achievement recognized my efforts." Suzanne said. "It is awesome
to be noticed for your contributions, and based on my passion for the
Junior Achievement organization and working with young children, I will
continue to do all I can to volunteer for as many teachers and students
as possible."
Suzanne shares that passion with her coworkers. Not only
does she volunteer for JA, she serves as Ford's JA Company Coordinator and
recruits other employees to serve as JA volunteers as well. Ford employees were
on hand at Paragon Mills teaching in 7 other Kindergarten classrooms as part of
JA in a Day. This unique arrangement of programs allows volunteers to teach all
five elementary-level lessons back-to-back in a matter of hours, instead of the
traditional five-week format.
In her ten years as a JA volunteer, Suzanne has been
recognized as JA's Volunteer of the Year in 2005, received the President's
Volunteer Service Award in 2007 and was invited to the White House last fall to
attend President Bush's Remarks on Volunteering as a result of winning one of
the Service Awards.
Junior Achievement of Middle Tennessee would like to thank
Suzanne Bingham for the countless hours she has spent preparing and inspiring
our young people to be successful in the real world. Volunteers are the driving
force of our organization whether you teach one class or one-hundred.
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Nashville business leader &
JA Board Member
shares experiences
at Hillwood High
On May 15, Pam Wright, CEO, owner and founder of
Nashville-based Wright Travel and JA Board of Directors member, shared her
entrepreneurial experiences with Hillwood
High School sophomores
through the JA Capitalism with Conscience program.
Pam volunteered in Ms. Mary York's AVID class. The students
in the AVID program are all first-generation college-potential students. They
are also one of the classes that received JA programs this school year as a
result of Pam's generous donation which underwrites the cost of all JA high
school program materials for the next three years.
Starting with the education
and passion that led her to the travel industry, Pam facilitated an interactive
discussion about ethics in business. Then she provided the students with a case
study that came straight from her experience and asked them to give their
thoughts on the ethical way to address a challenging situation. In small
groups, the discussions between students were lively. Then each group reported
out how they thought it should be handled and asked Pam questions.
When asked why she volunteers for JA, Pam says "As a
corporate citizen of Middle Tennessee, I believe Wright Travel has a
responsibility to participate in programs like this and support organizations
that work to improve the educational
experience for high school students."
She continued, "Programs like Junior Achievement need
support from local companies and citizens, or they can't be successful in
fulfilling their valuable mission. If we as business leaders can commit some of
our resources to have an impact and influence on high school students, we not
only help the students, but we gain ten-fold in the rewards to us as
individuals, businesses and communities."
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Opportunities for Connection
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Stay in touch with JA on the Web!
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Recycle Your JA Kits!
Finished teaching your JA class?
Have leftover materials?
Bring your JA kits to our office to recycle the extras or drop them off with your company coordinators.
Help us to be good stewards of the environment and of our donors' dollars by recycling your JA kits today!
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