For the third year in a row, Junior Achievement and EY will bring entrepreneurs into high school classrooms across the U.S. during November, for National Entrepreneurship Month, to share their experience with teens and to encourage them to consider business ownership as a career option.
Junior Achievement is the world’s largest organization dedicated to educating students in grades K-12 about entrepreneurship, work readiness, and financial literacy through experiential, hands-on programs. Each year, Junior Achievement’s entrepreneurship education initiative, known as JA Launch Lesson, reaches nearly 80,000 high school students across the U.S.
JA Launch Lesson is a 50-minute educational experience built around the theme of entrepreneurship that creates a point-of-entry for students, volunteers, and educators. It is delivered locally by entrepreneurs in classrooms, after-school facilities, and other student venues across the United States. Entrepreneurs are provided a guide by Junior Achievement that gives them the opportunity to connect with students, provide relevant information about their company and entrepreneurial journey, and share advice and next steps for students who are interested in starting their own business.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, total business applications have rebounded and increased significantly from the depths of the Great Recession, but the number of applications for businesses most likely to employ people continues to hover at the levels seen following the 2008 economic downturn.