Junior Achievement’s Board of Directors Inspire Students at Sigel Elementary School to Be Successful Adults in a One-Day JA Experience

On October 4, 2007, Junior Achievement’s Board of Directors will be providing its educational programs through a one-day event at Sigel Elementary. There is no better way to ensure the future success of today’s youth than through early hands-on education. The group of prominent St. Louis business people will become role models to the students of Sigel, teaching JA programs in a one-day experience known as JA-In-A-Day. They will spend up to 6 hours in 10 classrooms engaging students in grades 1 through 6 in learning activities and games designed to better the students’ understanding of free enterprise, business, and economics.

Thanks in large part to organizations and businesses, this year Junior Achievement will reach 119,000 students in grades K-12 via more than 5000 volunteers from the St. Louis area business community. JA staff trains these volunteers who generally spend one day a week for five to six weeks teaching students in their classrooms with curricula and materials developed and provided by JA Wordwide®.
Board members will engage students in grades K-8 with financial literacy, workforce readiness, and entrepreneurship activities designed to help prepare young people for the real world by showing them how to generate wealth and effectively manage it, how to create jobs which make their communities more robust, and how to apply entrepreneurial thinking to the workplace. Students put these lessons into action, and learn the value of contributing to their communities.
“We have a very active and supportive Board of Directors dedicated to youth in our community. They are outstanding role models for young people,” commented Lori Jacob, president of Junior Achievement of Mississippi Valley, Inc.

Junior Achievement operates under the principle that to achieve real knowledge, children must understand and experience the practical application of their education and see the relevance of day-to-day learning for future career opportunities. Junior Achievement programs and the volunteers who deliver them provide a method of doing just that. The JA experience is passionate people delivering engaging life lessons to our area’s youth, inspiring and preparing them to be tomorrow’s leaders.
For more information on Junior Achievement programs, JA-In-A-Day, and how you can get involved, please contact Junior Achievement’s Director of Volunteer Recruitment/Trainings, Fancheon Ford, at (636) 728-0707 ext. 227.

About Junior Achievement of Mississippi Valley, Inc.
Junior Achievement of Mississippi Valley (JAMVI) is an affiliate of JA Worldwide, which is the largest and fastest growing provider of economic education for youth. Founded in 1943, JAMVI has become the 5th largest JA Worldwide office in the United States, serving over 1.5 million local students. Our local operation encompasses 20 counties in Missouri and 14 counties in southern Illinois. A total of 119,000 students in over 700 schools in all grades are projected to participate in 2007-2008. Programs are offered in parochial, private, and public schools and education centers in and around St. Louis with satellite operations in outlying areas. A professional staff of 32 employees and a dedicated volunteer board of 60 members, representing prominent St. Louis businesses, govern Junior Achievement of Mississippi Valley, Inc. JAMVI’s office is located within The Dennis and Judy Jones Free Enterprise Center. The Center is home to JA’s 5th through 12th grade capstone education programs, the only facility of its kind in St. Louis and the world. For more information, visit www.jastl.org.

About JA Worldwide
Junior Achievement is the world's largest and fastest-growing non-profit organization dedicated to educating young people about business, economics, and free enterprise. Through a dedicated volunteer network, JA offers in-school and after-school programs for students in grades K-12. JA programs focus on seven key content areas: business, citizenship, economics, entrepreneurship, ethics/character, financial literacy, and career development. Today, nearly 150 JA offices reach more than 4 million students nationwide. Through its international operation, JA reaches another 2 million students in more than 100 countries worldwide. For more information, visit www.ja.org.