State Farm® Youth Advisory Board grants $53,984.
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San Diego, Feb. 22, 2010 – Junior Achievement of San Diego & Imperial Counties announces the receipt of a service-learning grant from The State Farm Youth Advisory Board in the amount of $53,984 for the Social Entrepreneurship & JA Company Program project.
Junior Achievement is one of 82 community organizations to receive a service-learning, youth-led grant across the United States and Canada. More than 1,100 grant requests were received by the Board.
Junior Achievement has partnered with Point Loma Nazarene University’s Students in Free Enterprise (SIFE) business club to deliver this project to high school students across San Diego County. The university business students instruct the JA Company Program curriculum which teaches the high school participants how to start and manage their own companies from the ground-up while learning the economic principles that influence business decisions, career opportunities and work readiness skills. When the participants make a profit from their student-run companies they are encouraged to use the proceeds to improve their school and community.
“Social Entrepreneurship fosters the foundation of the finance and business skills learned through the JA Company Program curriculum and by having the JA Companies take the profits earned and invest them back into their neighborhood the students not only learn valuable entrepreneurial skills but also learn how to make a social change in their community,” said Joanne Pastula, President and CEO of Junior Achievement of San Diego and Imperial Counties.
“State Farm supports service-learning because it combines service to the community with classroom curriculum in a hands-on approach to mastering subject material while fostering civic responsibility,” said Mike Rossman, State Farm, California Public Affairs. “The State Farm Youth Advisory Board is a prime example of State Farm’s commitment to education, our community and our youth.”
The program is enriched with a Free Enterprise Convention where students learn specific business principles from prominent San Diego business leaders that will guide them in putting together their business plans. The culminating event is an Entrepreneurial Competition where students compete for prizes in the areas of Product Originality, Overall Profitability and Social Responsibility.
Participating San Diego high schools include: Clairemont, San Diego High, San Diego MET, High Tech High – Chula Vista, Scripps Ranch, Monte Vista, Hilltop, Chapparal, Crawford, Patrick Henry, Chula Vista, Mira Mesa, Pacific Ridge.
State Farm insures more cars and homes than any other insurer in the U.S., is the leading insurer of watercraft and is also a leading insurer in Canada. State Farm's 17,000 agents and 68,000 employees serve about 80 million policies and accounts: more than 78 million auto, fire, life and health policies in the United States and Canada, and more than 1.9 million bank accounts. State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company is the parent of the State Farm family of companies. State Farm is ranked No. 32 on the Fortune 500 list of largest companies. For more information, please visit statefarm.com® or in Canada statefarm.ca®.
