Junior Achievement: Free Enterprise from the Ground Up

Mary Braselton
Director, Associate of Arts in Teaching Program
Midland College

A topic running through the Republican Presidential debates has been the value of free enterprise and its role in the maintenance of an economically-viable United States of America. It is nice to know that Midland ISD and Midland College are on board with support of the uniquely American concept of free enterprise and are to be commended for endorsing and participating in a program which affects 4 million U.S. students in more than 173,000 K-12 classrooms. The program is Junior Achievement USA™ and its core purpose is to inspire and prepare young people to succeed in a global economy.

Jack E. Kosakowski, president and CEO of Junior Achievement USA™, states that “Knowledge of the free enterprise system, its benefits to citizens and its relationship to job creation is important for young people across the nation, to the vitality of our communities and to the availability of a well-educated workforce.”

The basic concept of Junior Achievement (JA) emphasizes the Three Pillars of Student Success: Entrepreneurship, Work Readiness, and Financial Literacy within K-12 classrooms. Lessons are grade and age specific and prepared in great depth and detail. For example, the kindergarten lessons are entitled “Ourselves” which introduces the economic role of each individual. Third graders learn about “Our City” which focuses on economic development, local businesses, and career opportunities. Fifth graders learn about “Our Nation” which provides practical information about the demands of the job market and how an individual should meet those demands. All lessons are aligned with the TEKS, and beginning with the school year 2011-2012 the TEKS for Economics (1/2 credit) is now Economics with Emphasis on the Free Enterprise System and Its Benefits (Subchapter A, High School, §118.4). Read through these teaching objectives for a heart-warming reminder of the Revolutionary past at www.tea.state.us.tx

Junior Achievement can be traced to August 1916 when the Eastern States Agricultural and Industrial Exposition in Springfield, Massachusetts, hosted a conference of 300 agricultural and business leaders. These leaders set the goal of designing general wholesome activities for boys and girls. In 1918, Theodore Vail, president of American Telephone & Telegraph (AT&T) and co-founder of what eventually became Junior Achievement stated:

"The future of our country depends upon making every individual fully realize the obligations and responsibilities belonging to citizenship. Habits are formed in youth…what we need in this country now … is to teach the growing generations to realize that thrift and economy, coupled with industry, are necessary now as they were in past generations." http://www.ja.org/about/about_history.shtml

This firm belief in the free enterprise system has caused the CEOs of myriad corporations to support JA financially. They base their continued support on startling statistics regarding students who drop out of school. “Every day, 7,000 students drop out of high school. Last year, 1.3 million failed to graduate. By 2020, 15 million more will join them. Overall, young people who drop out are twice as likely as graduates to be unemployed; three times as likely to live in poverty; eight times as likely to wind up in prison; and twice as likely to become the parent of a child who drops out of school. The impact on the United States economy is tremendous, and one of the major goals of JA is to keep students in school by enticing them to learn about a free economy and the role that education plays in their reaching their potential.” www.ja.org

Adults struggling with the realities of economics may overlook the impact that today’s uncertain economic environment has on young people, so Junior Achievement USA™ and the National Chamber Foundation (NCF) (a non-profit affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce dedicated to identifying and fostering public debate on emerging critical issues) conducted a national survey (summer 2011) of 2,213 high school juniors to discover what they were thinking about entrepreneurship, free enterprise and capitalism.

The survey’s results “confirm the need for and value in providing entrepreneurship education for high school students, through both classroom-based and co-curricular learning opportunities. At least 9 in 10 juniors believe it is important to be taught about entrepreneurship, free enterprise and capitalism, yet less than half (45 percent) have been taught about entrepreneurship in school. JA and NCF are committed to strengthening their relationship through support of Junior Achievement’s JA Be Entrepreneurial® program. Delivered by corporate and community volunteers, the JA Be Entrepreneurial program focuses on challenging high school students to start their own entrepreneurial venture through interactive classroom activities that provide relevant, hands-on experiences.”

The survey documents that 7 in 10 high school juniors believe that the economy will either stay the same or get worse in the coming year, and 9 in 10 are concerned about future job prospects after they finish high school.

“The Chamber is constantly focused on emerging business issues, and members of Congress and the administration should take note that our nation’s young people are sharing many of the same concerns about the economy as the majority of working Americans,” said Margaret Spellings, former secretary of education and president of the Chamber’s U.S. Forum for Policy Innovation. “In business, we value employees that can think strategically and outside the box, and we as leaders need to encourage learning opportunities that enhance the core principles of free enterprise to develop these skills early on.”

Additional findings from the Free Enterprise National Survey can be found in an executive summary of survey results at www.ja.org

Midland College future educators consistently find the opportunity to teach as volunteers for Junior Achievement is one of the most satisfying and career enhancing opportunities during their studies to become teachers. Not only do students get to test drive the teaching profession with state of the art materials, they get to interact with professional MISD teachers who help them do the best job they can teaching for the first time. It is a win-win situation for MISD students and MC future teachers.

Note: JA is supported through grants, personal gifts, and in-kind contributions from corporations and individuals worldwide in addition to hosting more than 171,000 volunteers annually. If you are interested in volunteering locally or supporting JA financially, you can contact the Educational Director for West Texas Junior Achievement USA™ at dfinch@japermianbasin.org or calling the office at 682-4966. You do not need a degree in economics to volunteer for JA — just a willingness to teach youngsters about the uniqueness of American business opportunity and a few hours of time.