eDividends│March 2016
In This Issue:
Visit the New JAColorado.org

We are proud to announce the launch of JA's new online home! The website has been redesigned to make it easier for visitors to navigate, and it's built with a responsive design so it will look good on any device. We'd love to know what you think! Email us your comments.

Registration Open for JA Business Week 
Registration for JA Business Week 2016, presented by Arrow Electronics, is open! Unlike any camp, this unique program allows high school students to explore leadership concepts and build confidence alongside Denver's most accomplished business leaders. Students who register by March 15 receive $25 off the registration price.
JA Bowl-A-Thon
JA Bowl-A-Thon season is here! Companies that have already hit the lanes in 2016 include DIRECTV, Lockton, Pepsi Beverages Co., Frito-Lay, CACI and Linhart PR.

Interested in getting involved with this fun-filled team-building event? In the Denver area, contact
Maryclaire Costello at 303-628-7376. In Northern Colorado, contact Joy Nyenhuis at 970-490-1035. In the mountain communities, contact Sally Messinger at 720-299-4646.
Paolo Diaz Recognized as a DBJ 40 Under 40 Winner
We are proud to announce that Paolo Diaz, JA's director of K-8 programs, is being recognized by the Denver Business Journal as one of the 40 outstanding local professionals under age 40. He will be honored at an event on March 17. Click here to learn more about Paolo's accomplishments.

Be Like James: New JA in a Day Volunteer Video 
March and April are the busiest months for JA in a Day programs. We recently released this short and entertaining video to help volunteers prepare for success in the classroom. 
JA Announces New Board Members
On Feb. 5, JA-Rocky Mountain welcomed four individuals to the JA Board of Directors.
  • Allison Farish, DaVita Inc.
  • Al Fialkovich, Transworld Business Advisors
  • Dr. Marcelo Godoy, Newmont Mining Corp.
  • Kathy Lutito, CenturyLink, Inc.
JA in the News
Front Porch (2/1/16): Students Learn Real-World Skills at Business Camp

Steamboat Today (2/8/16): Steamboat Schools Embrace K-12 Junior Achievement Program

Denver Business Journal (2/12/16): Presenting DBJ's 40 Under 40 Class of 2016

Lone Tree Voice (2/16/16): Denver-area Students Get a Taste of Wall Street
JA Heritage Society
The JA Heritage Society is a group of supporters who have chosen to include JA in their estate planning. Please let us know if you have included JA-Rocky Mountain in your estate plans.
President's Message
I'm Not a Rocket Scientist, a Scratch Golfer, or a Swimsuit Model. Dang.

Robin Wise
Income inequality is a hot button issue that will only gain traction in the months leading up to the November elections. There will be a call for our elected officials to close the gender gap, the wage gap, the talent gap and lots of other "gap-isms."

Aren't gaps natural? I don't have the knowledge of a rocket scientist, nor do I have the athletic talent of a pro golfer on the tour. And sadly, my paycheck is not equal to that of a Sports Illustrated swimsuit model. Dang, that makes me unhappy. 

Instinct tells us that wealth brings happiness. Yet, loads of data proves that money doesn't buy happiness. Scholars like Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman have found that once people get beyond a certain amount of money to provide for their family's well-being, more money doesn't yield much increase in happiness. Lottery winners know that.

So, if not the big brass ring, what makes people happy? The key is the ability to earn our success. The ability to create value with our lives and in the lives of others. It's the right to define and pursue our happiness as we see fit, and work with all our might to attain it. Work brings dignity and purpose to lives.

I may not have the knowledge to build a rocket, or have tour level golf talent, but what I have is the freedom to pursue creative achievement, chase excellence, or find the joy in earning a paycheck. Dang, that makes me happy.

In our national dialog about equality and fairness, we've all but rewritten the moral promise of the Declaration of Independence. Our nation's Founders didn't guarantee happiness. They didn't even say people have the "right to happiness." The Declaration of Independence states that we have the right to pursue happiness. How lucky we are that our nation's Founders opened a path for people to pursue an unlimited future. How fortunate we are they did not immorally guarantee happiness by seeking to close a wage gap or a talent gap, but instead created the conditions of liberty and opportunity so we can open windows, let our spirits soar and be masters of our own destinies. 

That should make us all happy.
Robin Wise, Presient & CEO, Junior Achievement - Rocky Mountain Inc.




Robin Wise, President & CEO
Back by Popular Demand: JA Stock Market Challenge 
More than 1,000 students from 33 area high schools competed in the first-ever spring semester JA Stock Market Challenge on Feb. 10 and 11 at the Charles Schwab Campus Event Center in Lone Tree.

The JA Stock Market Challenge, presented by Charles Schwab, is an engaging stock market simulation game, featuring teams of high school students who compete to see who can grow their initial $500,000 investment into the largest net worth "mock" stock portfolio. Students apply what they have learned in the JA Take Stock in Your Future classroom lessons about individual equities, the impact of the economy, geopolitical events, and market sentiment, all against the backdrop of competing with their peers. The challenge offers a taste of what it's like to build a portfolio, manage risk, and experience its performance in a compressed period of time.

"This is a fantastic exercise to pique students' interest in the potential power of investing," said Brian McDonald, senior vice president of client services & support at Charles Schwab. 

The JA Stock Market Challenge corporate event, as well as the fall semester's student competition, will be held in November. Read more and view event photos.
JA Engage to Host First Young Professionals Event
Winery Tour and Tasting at Infinite Monkey Theorem
JA Engage, JA-Rocky Mountain's new young professionals group, is hosting its first social event at Infinite Monkey Theorem, Denver's Urban Winery, on Thurs., March 31 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. The event will consist of a winery tour followed by a tasting and an opportunity for attendees to blend their own wine while networking with other young professionals.

JA Engage was started by a group of young professionals who are passionate about JA's mission. With the support of JA-Rocky Mountain, the group strives to foster a community of young professionals in the Denver metro area who are actively engaged with JA. The members of JA Engage represent the next generation of JA leaders, volunteers, and supporters.

Participation in JA Engage is an opportunity to learn, have fun and broaden one's network, while supporting an amazing cause. The members of JA Engage attend various educational, networking, and social events hosted by the group throughout the year. They also directly support JA by volunteering and fundraising.

To sign up for the Infinite Monkey Theorem event or learn more about JA Engage, please email [email protected].
Volunteer Spotlight, provided with support from DIRECTV
JA Volunteer and Retiree Tom Durkin Continues to Inspire 

Tom Durkin makes economics fun for elementary school students
On any given weekday, Tom Durkin's backseat is overflowing with at least half a dozen 10-lb, clear plastic "briefcases." Inside are hours' worth of games and activities that help him inspire 2nd, 3rd and 4th graders to dream big, work hard and own their future success.

Tom is a proud member of the JA Apple Society - a group of select JA volunteers who have impacted 250 students or more. He has volunteered his time through JA for decades, and estimates that he has taught more than 3,000 young people since 2010.

Tom first got involved with JA when he was a young professional working for American Express. He was recruited to teach the JA Company Program, an after school club that engaged high school students in launching a small business. Read more.
Junior Achievement-Rocky Mountain, Inc.
[email protected]  |  JAColorado.org

1445 Market St., Suite 200 | Denver, CO 80202
1600 N. College Ave., Suite 150 | Fort Collins, CO 80524

Empowering young people to own their economic success.