Eight Young Entrepreneurs Presented Business Plans to a Panel of Investors
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Caleb Lafferty, an eighth grade student and “self-taught” computer whiz, won $2,200 in start-up capital March 25 after presenting his invention and business plan to a panel of prominent investors from the Virginia Peninsula business community.
Lafferty was among eight students who took to the stage and pitched their business plans in the climactic event of the Virginia Peninsula’s Young Entrepreneur’s Academy Program (YEA!), sponsored by the Virginia Peninsula Chamber Foundation.
Now, Lafferty will advance to the Young Entrepreneurs Academy Saunders Scholars Semi Final Competition, where he will compete against other local YEA! finalists in the Southern Regional Semi Final Competition in Boca Raton, Florida.
Lafferty’s expenses will be covered by Southwest Airlines, and he will compete against students from Alabama, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia for a chance to go to the National Competition.
While at the regional competition Caleb will have the chance to meet with regional investors and discuss his business, take a tour of major corporation and hear from their leadership, and compete for a spot in the National Competition in Washington D.C. where he will have a chance to pitch not only to investors, but Sam’s Club and Walmart Purchasing Execs, thousands of dollars in college scholarships, a fast-track application pass to apply to be on ABC’s Shark Tank, and an all-expenses paid trip to attend America’s Small Business Summit in Washington, DC, courtesy of the United States Chamber of Commerce.
“The YEA! program is the beginning of the creation of an entrepreneurial culture here on the Virginia Peninsula,” said Mike Kuhns, President and CEO of the Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce (VPCC). “Just like we create athletes or ballet dancers or piano players in middle school, we are creating an entrepreneurial culture. This is the future of our community, of our economy.”
YEA! is a year-long program that teaches middle and high school students how to start and run their own real businesses. The program guides students, grades six through 12, through the process of starting and running a legitimate business or social movement.
This is the first year the YEA! program has been active in the Virginia Peninsula.
Pitch night is a culmination of several months of planning, with funding thanks to generous investors who include Jack Ezzell, Jr., Founder and CEO of Zel Technologies, Sharnya Smith, Youth Café Coordinator for the Peninsula Council for Workforce Development, Bruce Farrior, General Manager of Paragon Theaters and D’Shawn Wright, Founder and Owner of Body By D Gym and Fitness Center Ferguson Enterprises, Tidewater Touring & Charter, and Sam’s Club who awarded one student business with a $500 shopping spree.
The investors awarded the start up capital to the YEA! students based on the appeal and merit of the student’s plans and presentations.
In addition to Lafferty, the student businesses included:
Sakiah Gatling-Brown, a 17-year-old junior at Warwick High School, who invented “Foxy Guard,” a clip that attaches to a woman’s bra that when activated if in danger can send a text message to alert someone.
Dominic Ageyenkov, an 11-year-old sixth grader at Booker T. Washington Middle School, created “Reversitie,” an interchangeable necktie and bow tie for men.
Devin Fields, a 17-year-old senior at Hampton High School, developed “Striend,” which allows friends to communicate through computer screen sharing.
Rash’d Bernard, a 16-year-old freshman at the Achievable Dream High School, invented “TARA: The Game Extender,” a wireless game extender that allows gamers to play games in different rooms without having to move the game system.
Kaylie Crews, a 16-year-old sophomore at Poquoson High School, created “Cool Play,” a series of customized grips that go over video game controllers.
Imani Gaston, a 13-year-old eighth grader at Hampton Christian Academy, and Sigrid Perkinson, a 12-year-old sixth grader at Booker T. Washington Middle School, developed “Creative Design Factory,” an assortment of customized lotions and liquid soaps. Together, Gaston and Perkinson earned a $500 Sam’s Club award and were funded an additional $1,500 from the investor panel to start their business.
“It’s been really fun to watch and just ask questions that I see will get the wheels turning in his head,” said Chris Flores, an executive with BB&T who was among several local business leaders who volunteered to mentor the students as they developed their business plans. “This exercise will prepare the students for the real world of business as well as teach them what is involved in being an entrepreneur.”
Devin Fields, who Flores mentored, called the experience of working with a seasoned business professional among the highlights of the program.
Flores “ helped me with financials, he’s given me ideas for promotions (and) without him, I would be lost.”
About The Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!)
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
About Virginia Peninsula Chamber Foundation Inc.
The Virginia Peninsula Chamber Foundation, Inc. (VPCF) founded in 1991 has a mission to promote and advance economic stability on the Virginia Peninsula business communities of Hampton, Newport News, Poquoson, James City County and York County through the development and delivery of business education programs with emphasis on basic business education and leadership training for adults, students and Peninsula business organizations while providing mentoring support systems. The foundation has developed three proven educational programs, LEAD Peninsula, Youth LEAD Peninsula, and Youth Career Expo, which produce community leaders. These unique programs incorporate different teaching styles and require the participants to develop program solutions to improve the present economic climate within the Peninsula. The Virginia Peninsula Chamber Foundation is now partnering with community organizations to bring the YEA! program to the Virginia Peninsula.
