Young Entrepreneurs Academy! (YEA!)
About YEA!
The Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!) transforms students into real, confident entrepreneurs. Throughout the year-long program, Webster Schroeder and Webster Thomas high school students generate business ideas, conduct market research, and write business plans as they prepare to launch their businesses into the world.
Our community is a key in the success of our YEA! students. Community members, businesses, and organizations serve as mentors, donors, and investors. Mentors meet with our YEA! entrepreneurs and participate in formative business conversations to helpfully develop and realize their proposals. Donors make a financial contribution to the program (in an amount of their choosing) to help support developing student proposals into finished products and provide scholarship funding to selected entrepreneurs. Investors pledge money toward student businesses and join us for an in-person Shark Tank-style presentation of student entrepreneur business proposals.
Interested in being a part of this? Email program coordinator Jim McEntee at james_mcentee@webstercsd.org.
2024 Webster YEA! Investor Panel
The 15th Annual YEA Investors Panel was held March 21 during which 18 student businesses were awarded a total of $6,300. The business chosen to move on to the YEA Saunders Scholars Competition at Rochester Institute of Technology is Expressive Echo Tutoring created by Roman P. The first runner up is J 'ND J Marketing established by Jake I., Nick S., Drew H., Jack S., and Maya P., and the second runner up is On The Line by Juliana F.The Investors Panel provides the young entrepreneurs the opportunity to pitch their businesses in Shark Tank-style to a panel of investors. The businesses that presented were: JJS Services, J ‘ND J Marketing, WanderShare App, BackLinked, Meeson Embroidery, Culinary Revolution, Volt Energy, Elevate Wallets, Addie’s Beaded Boutique, Revolt Energy, LC Welding & Repair, Western Landscapes, MJR Auto Detailing, Expressive Echo Tutoring, Smart Planning, M & M Athletics, On the Line, and 2 Man.
Thank you to this year’s YEA investor panelists: Bill Boulter - Boulter Industries; Barry Howard - Webster Chamber of Commerce; Jerry Christopher - State Farm; Brian Neenan - Webster CSD; John Gabriele - Marina Dodge; Ben Austin - West Herr; May S. Chiccino - Family First Credit Union; Brian Benedict - Reliant Credit Union; Webster Schroeder FBLA - Annabelle Weis; and Webster Thomas FBLA - Adam Watson.
The Webster YEA! student(s) receiving the largest investment at the Investor's Panel advance to the finals of the YEA Saunders Scholars Bright Ideas college scholarship competition to be held in June. There they vie for one of three scholarship awards ranging from $20,000 to $30,000 to Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT) and an opportunity to display their product or service at Imagine RIT: Innovation Creativity Festival.