Junior Achievement USA Announces National Student Awardees

Junior Achievement Teams of Teen Entrepreneurs from JA of North Central Ohio, JA of Southeast Texas, JA of Southeastern Pennsylvania, and JA of South Florida, Earn National Recognition

Teens Competed with Students from 14 other JA Student Companies to Earn National Recognition

Colorado Springs, CO —On Wednesday, June 22nd, the teen entrepreneurs representing Junior Achievement of JA of North Central Ohio, JA of Southeast Texas, JA of Southeastern Pennsylvania, and JA of South Florida, earned national recognition from among 15 JA student companies while participating in Junior Achievement's (JA) 2022 National Student Leadership Summit (NSLS). The competition took place in Washington, D.C.

In addition to earning recognition, the teens representing the first-place student Company of the Year were each awarded a $3,000 JA Company of the Year Scholarship. To the five students representing the second-place team, all were awarded $1,500 scholarships, and $1,000 scholarships were awarded to each of the five students representing the third-place team. All scholarships were awarded by the Achievement Foundation.

Junior Achievement's National Student Leadership Summit is a contest of business skills, ingenuity, and innovation that focuses on the accomplishments of the U.S. JA Company Program^® students, ages 15-19, during the 2021-2022 academic year. JA Company Program students start and run a real business enterprise under the guidance of a volunteer from the local business community. They devise and market a product or service that fills an unmet consumer need and recruit investors for their company.

The student companies competing at the NSLS were assessed on both their business performance as well as the personal and professional development of individual team members. Scored elements of the competition include a self-produced annual report and commercial, a live virtual presentation to a panel of business leaders, and interviews with judges.

The following awards were presented during the Awards Gala on Wednesday, June 22nd. The 2022 JA National Student Leadership Summit awards that were presented include:

JA Company of the Year: Awarded to the student businesses that most effectively demonstrated their companies' achievements, as well as the personal development of each team member.

First Place – Brainwave, representing JA of North Central Ohio (Canton, OH)

Second Place – EVO, representing JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX)

Third Place – Relaxivibe, representing JA of Southeastern Pennsylvania (City, State, Area)

Delta Social Impact Award: Awarded to the student team that created a solution to address a local, national, or global social concern.

Dulicious Co., representing JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX)

FedEx Global Possibilities Award: Awarded to the student company that best exhibits the principles of global connectivity.

Ecossentials, representing JA of South Florida (Fort Lauderdale, FL)

ICE NYSE Foundation Best Financial Performance Award: Awarded to the student team that demonstrated the best financial results, including profitability, investor expectations, employee earnings, product quality, leadership, and operational efficiency.

Ecossentials, representing JA of South Florida (Fort Lauderdale, FL)

The 15 finalist teams that participated were:

Amity – JA of Greater Washington (Washington, D.C., Area)
Botl+ – JA of Northern New England (Boston, MA, Area)
Brain Wave – JA of North Central Ohio (Canton, OH, Area)
Charcute – JA of San Diego County (San Diego, CA, Area)
Dulicious Co – JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX, Area)
Ecossentials – JA of South Florida (Fort Lauderdale, FL, Area)
EVO – JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX, Area)
Embracelet – JA of Northern California (San Francisco, CA, Area)
Gateway Clothing Co – JA of Greater St. Louis (Chesterfield, MO, Area)
InnoVistics – JA of North Central Ohio (Canton, OH, Area)
IRIS – JA of Greater Washington (Washington, D.C., Area)
On The Money Magazine – JA of Chicago (Chicago, IL, Area)
Relaxivibe – JA of Southeastern Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA, Area)
Sababa – JA of North Central Ohio (Canton, OH, Area)
TriSense – JA of Northern New England (Boston, MA, Area)

About Junior Achievement USA® (JA)

Junior Achievement is the world's largest organization dedicated to giving young people the knowledge and skills they need to own their economic success, plan for their future, and make smart academic and economic choices. JA programs are delivered by corporate and community volunteers, and provide relevant, hands-on experiences that give students from kindergarten through high school knowledge and skills in financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship. Today, JA reaches more than 2.5 million students per year in 103 markets across the United States as part of 10 million students served by operations in 100 other countries worldwide. Junior Achievement USA is a member of JA Worldwide. Visit www.ja.org for more information.

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