Young Americans Center for Financial Education and YouthBiz Create Joint Partnership

DENVER - Dec. 4, 2014 - PRLog -- With nearly 50 years of combined experience working with young people, Young Americans Center for Financial Education and YouthBiz are excited to announce they are entering into a joint partnership to create the largest and most comprehensive youth-serving entrepreneurial organization in Colorado.  Operations will combine and transition over a three-year period, at which point all programming will be housed under Young Americans Center.

For the past 22 years, YouthBiz has offered transformative opportunities for more than 5,600 young people to gain entrepreneurial skills, generate income, and engage in positive learning environments.  Young Americans Center for Financial Education, established in 1987, is the organization behind Young Americans Bank and unique financial education experiences like Young AmeriTowne and International Towne that reaches nearly 60,000 youth people annually.  It also offers a youth entrepreneurship program that includes in-person activities, web-based resources, and a classroom curriculum.

“We are thrilled at the possibilities and opportunities this new relationship creates.  Entrepreneurship is at the heart of Young Americans Center, as our founder, Bill Daniels, was the very epitome of an entrepreneur,” said Rich Martinez, President and CEO of Young Americans Center for Financial Education. “We are eager to unite with YouthBiz and all it has done as a long-standing pillar of entrepreneurial education in Denver.”

YouthBiz will remain in its current form for the time being.  The staff will continue to serve the students and families in Denver’s Five Points area from the current location.  With the collaboration of the Young Americans team, YouthBiz will still offer a variety of entrepreneurial classes to the current student cohort and any new students who seek support.  The mission of YouthBiz will not change; what will change will be the expanded reach.

“Bringing together these two organizations will better serve current and future young entrepreneurs,” relayed Aaron Bailey, Chair of the Board of Directors.  “Young Americans is a key player in financial education and entrepreneurship around Colorado, and we at YouthBiz look forward to jointly creating new programs and extended access to young people seeking support in their endeavors.”

Over the next three years, the joint operation has ambitious plans:

·        Aim to reach more than 5,000 students in their classrooms, and thousands more through the growth of online platforms.

·        Envision an enhanced delivery model for curriculum content that incorporates the best experiences the two organizations have, to teach young people in a hands-on, real-life way.

·        Evaluate additional options to support new neighborhoods of students seeking an outlet for their entrepreneurial spirit.

·        By the end of 2017, all programming will be fully integrated to provide a streamlined experience to students of all economic levels, all education levels, all age levels, throughout Colorado.

Students and families seeking entrepreneurial resources, classes, and support, are encouraged to contact either organization (www.yacenter.org or www.youthbiz.org).  As the partnership deepens, the public will be notified about how best to access programming.

Young Americans Center for Financial Education is a nonprofit organization committed to developing the financial literacy of young people, up to age 22, through real life experiences and hands-on programs. The Center fulfills its mission by offering programs that complement and reinforce each other to build life skills, work skills and financial self-sufficiency. These include Young AmeriTowne, International Towne, Founding Framework, Money Matters classes, summer camps, and more. In addition, Young Americans Center houses the only real bank in the world for young people, Young Americans Bank, which shares the same educational mission of teaching children to be financially responsible. Since 1987, more than 600,000 youth have participated in the programs or bank. For more information on the Young Americans Center for Financial Education, visit www.yacenter.org.