Setting an Example

Mon, 18 Mar 2019 09:47:38 -0500

Many parents get involved in their child’s school by volunteering to help with field trips or joining the parent/teacher organization.

Deatria Walker lent a helping hand with a program at her son’s school that she was very familiar with – Junior Achievement.

“Volunteering is important to me. My son’s school sent out a request for volunteers for the Junior Achievement program. Since I was involved in the program as a high schooler, I thought it was a wonderful opportunity to get involved in his school,” the Cincinnati, Ohio, agent says.

For Deatria, Junior Achievement sparked her interest and motivated her to attend college. A recent Cincinnati high school graduate had a similar experience.

Ty’ron Little participated in the JA Personal Finance program in eighth grade and the JA It’s My Future program in high school. He put the information he learned through these programs to use to get a job, open a bank account, buy a car and get into Miami University.

Junior Achievement featured Ty’ron in a video and asked Deatria to pose as the small-business educator.

“I got to talk to Ty’ron and get the back story of what he had gone through with his mom and family members. He wanted to set an example for his little brother. He said Junior Achievement helped him stay focused,” Deatria says.

“We realized what a unique and wonderful story Ty’ron had,” Laura Randall-Tepe, vice president of strategic relations for Junior Achievement of OKI Partners – Cincinnati/Dayton/Richmond, says. “We know there are kids engaged in the program and from the program. They’re introduced to strategies and concepts they didn’t know or hadn’t picked up.”

Deatria wanted to give back to her community, and Junior Achievement was a great way to do that.

“It’s a blessing I have this career. When I was younger I wanted to be a teacher. Although I’m a State Farm^® agent today, I’m able to fulfill that need to help educate and pass on the knowledge I’ve learned to benefit someone else,” she says.

“I think it’s our responsibility to reach back and give as much as we can to someone who needs assistance,” the 10-year agent adds. “There were so many adults who helped me when I was a student and didn’t have much. Now it is my time to help take care of others.”

Volunteers Matter

Fri, 07 Apr 2017 06:52:00 -0500

“Once they have to pay their own bills, they will understand the value of a dollar!”

Have you ever uttered a similar sentence about your children? It can be hard for kids to grasp how much things cost until they have to make their own way in the world. By that point, they may have already made bad financial decisions. Decisions that can have them digging their way out of debt for years.

That’s where financial literacy education comes into play. Junior Achievement of Southeast Texas (JASET) teaches fourth through sixth grade students the value of a dollar in their classrooms.

JASET also provides the students with a unique, hands on program called JA BizTown. This learning experience helps students make a connection between what they learn in school and how to apply it in the real world.

In JA BizTown, students “work” in businesses, restaurants, city government, utilities, and banks. And they earn paychecks and pay bills!

But what makes JA BizTown so successful? Volunteers. Business executives, community leaders, and parents engaging in the classrooms is what makes JA BizTown a big hit.

“JASET knows volunteers are essential to reaching more than 300,000 Houston-area students each year,” DeJeania Jones, who manages JA BizTown, shared. “On local school campuses, volunteers teach financial literacy, work-readiness, and entrepreneurship. They help students understand and practice critical thinking skills. They also act as mentors and role models to students.”

JA BizTown is something students look forward to each year. It’s a one-time opportunity to enjoy a field trip to operate a business for a day, serve as bank teller, mayor, or take part in one of dozens of other roles.

On that day, local volunteers share experiences from their own lives as they help students. They show them how to run businesses, sell goods/services, deposit checks, pay bills, and complete other tasks to be active citizens of JA BizTown.

“When good neighbors make time to volunteer in classrooms, students gain a better understanding of how education is relevant to the jobs, income levels, and lifestyles,” shared DeJeania.

“JA BizTown positively impacts students in many ways,” DeJeania said. “We love seeing the energy students have when they apply their classroom lessons taught by local volunteers.”

“It makes me feel very happy that so many people make time to improve my education by teaching in our classroom and they helped me to develop life skills by guiding me during my field trip to JA BizTown,” from an evaluation by Rain, a fifth grader who spent a day in JA BizTown. “I hope we made you proud.”

“Each year, one of our goals is to increase volunteers who take part in classrooms and at JA BizTown,” DeJeania said. “Through volunteerism, State Farm – who also provides annual philanthropic support - and other supporters show their dedication to helping students do well both academically and in their future as workers, entrepreneurs, and community leaders.”

Good Neighbor Stories

Setting an Example

Volunteers Matter