Young Entrepreneur Academy Expands Its Powerful Program

DETROIT - June 23, 2015 - PRLog -- The Young Entrepreneurs Academy, (YEA!), is an innovative program that transforms local middle and high school students into real entrepreneurial successes. YEA! is excited to announce its new site, National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO) 501c(3) foundation, NAWBO/EXCEL Detroit, to pilot the program in the fall of 2015.

YEA! is a cutting-edge program that takes students between the ages of 11 and 18 through the process of starting and launching a real business or social movement over the course of an academic year . By the end of the class, students own and operate fully-formed and functioning businesses, which may be carried on after their graduation from the program. YEA! aims to teach students at an early age how to make a job, not just take a job. It is the ONLY pre-college program developed by an entrepreneur, at a university, with support from a major entrepreneurial foundation, the Kauffman Foundation and the United States Chamber of Commerce.

“We are excited about launching this expansion and specifically chose the Detroit Area because of its reputation for academic excellence,” said Gayle Jagel, the CEO and Founder of the Young Entrepreneurs Academy. Jagel developed the YEA! program in 2004, while serving as the Director of the Office of Special Programs at the University of Rochester. In 2008, YEA! “spun-off” from the University to create its own not-for-profit corporation, YEA! Inc. The program is currently introducing sites in colleges, universities and high schools across the country.

Students in the area are already heavily involved in student-body activities and pride themselves on hard work, which bodes well for the program, since it requires a nine-month commitment from its young executives.  In this time, students will brainstorm and form their enterprises, make pitches to real investors, obtain funding, file their DBAs, and by the end, actually launch their own business or social movement! Business mentors and local entrepreneurs across a variety of industries will support the students throughout the program. All of the learning is real and experiential.

“One of the most interesting components of the YEA! program is the actual ‘behind the scenes’ knowledge that local business leaders are able to share with students,” said Carol Kirkland, President of NAWBO/EXCEL.  “This experience is something they will be able to apply to any field they choose to enter, and will provide them with the necessary skills to become future leaders of their industries.”

“The entire community is on board with NAWBO/EXCEL Detroit's plans to pilot the program in the fall,” adds Jagel. “We encourage local business leaders to become involved with the program and to act as mentors to the budding entrepreneurs.” By partnering with YEA!, both large and small businesses can volunteer their time as business mentors, field trip hosts, guest lecturers, graphic designers, web developers, attorneys, and more. Community support strengthens the program, and the academy strengthens the community.

We are more than excited to revive the spirit of entrepreneurship in our city’s young students! Classes begin in the fall at Wayne State University. For more information on the YEA! program and how you can nominate a student, contact Melissa Hughes at 313-961-4748, YEANAWBODetroit@yahoo.com.

The Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!) is a groundbreaking and exciting year long class that transforms middle and high school students into real, confident entrepreneurs. Throughout the class, students develop business ideas, write business plans, conduct market research, pitch their plans to a panel of investors, and actually launch and run their own real, legal, fully formed companies and social movements. Founded in 2004 at the University of Rochester with support from the Kauffman Foundation, the Young Entrepreneurs Academy today serves thousands of students in communities across America. For more information about the Young Entrepreneurs Academy, please call 585.272.3535 or visit www.yeausa.org.

The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation (USCCF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce dedicated to strengthening America’s long-term competitiveness by addressing developments that affect our nation, our economy, and the global business environment.

The U.S. Chamber Foundation and Campaign for Free Enterprise are

national sponsors and partners of YEA!, helping to promote the spirit of

enterprise among today’s youth and tomorrow’s future leaders.

In 2011, the United States Chamber of Commerce and Campaign for Free Enterprise became a national sponsor and partner of the Young Entrepreneurs Academy to help promote the spirit of enterprise among today’s youth and tomorrow’s future leaders.  Through coordination with its network of local chambers of commerce, the U.S. Chamber has helped communities across the country adopt the YEA! program. Together, the Young Entrepreneurs Academy and the U.S. Chamber of Commerce are celebrating the power and promise of young people in business and encouraging the next greatest generation to make a job, not just take a job.

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ABOUT NAWBO/EXCEL

NAWBO/EXCEL is the 501(c)3 foundation of the National Association of Women Business Owners, Greater Detroit Chapter, incorporated in 1981.   The mission of NAWBO/EXCEL is to provide on-going education, support and mentoring of girls and women wanting to start or grow a successful business.  GirlBiz, Yea!, Athena PowerLinks, and NAWBO U are four programs currently overseen by the organization.  For more information, visit www.nawboexcel.org.

ABOUT NAWBO

The National Association of Women Business Owners (NAWBO), headquartered in Washington, DC, was started in 1978, and is the only dues based national organization representing the interests of all women entrepreneurs in all kinds of businesses.  The organization currently has 90 chapters in the United States and is affiliated with Les Femmes Chefs d'Enterprises Mondiales (World Association of Women Entrepreneurs).  NAWBO's vision is to propel women entrepreneurs into economic, social, and political spheres of power worldwide.   The Greater Detroit Chapter (GDC) was charted in 1980.  For more information about the NAWBO Greater Detroit Chapter, visit: www.nawbogdc.org.