Young Teen Entrepreneurs and Innovators from Junior Achievement Achieve National Recognition at the 2024 Junior Achievement National Student Leadership Summit

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

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., June 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- On Wednesday, June 12, Junior Achievement (JA) announced the award winners at the 2024 National Student Leadership Summit, showcasing the talents and achievements of young entrepreneurs and innovators nationwide. The summit featured four dynamic competitions, each highlighting the ingenuity and creativity of participating students. The  Junior Achievement National Student Leadership Summit (NSLS) was held in Washington, D.C.

The JA Company of the Year Competition and the JA Social Innovation Challenge bring the top 15 JA Company Program teams and the top 10 JA Social Innovation Challenge teams to Washington, D.C. for three days of high-impact JA experiences. Student teams will demonstrate their business acumen, creativity, and entrepreneurial thinking in a competitive environment showcasing their companies to Members of Congress and business leaders.

Junior Achievement's JA Company Program^® showcases the remarkable business skills, ingenuity, and innovation of students, aged 15-18, throughout the 2023-2024 academic year. Students embark on the journey of launching and operating real business enterprises under the guidance of dedicated local business volunteers. They conceptualize and market products or services that address unmet consumer needs and attract investors for their ventures.

The JA Social Innovation Challenge, an initiative aimed at fostering innovation, critical thinking, and social responsibility among students, encourages students from across the county to submit their creative solution to an issue they see. From environmental sustainability to social inclusion, the projects can reflect diverse solutions that address real-world challenges.

The student companies competing at the NSLS underwent rigorous evaluation encompassing their business performance and individual team members' personal and professional growth. The competition's key components included producing a self-produced annual report and commercial, a captivating live virtual presentation to a distinguished panel of business leaders, and insightful interviews with esteemed judges.

The Awards Gala, held on Wednesday, June 12, served as the platform for presenting the coveted 2024 JA National Student Leadership Summit awards, including:

• 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 – FlameGuard – JA of North Central Ohio (Canton, OH)
  • Second Place – EVO – JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX)
  • Third Place – Mission Monarch – JA of North Central Ohio (Canton, OH)

• JA Social Innovation Challenge: Awarded to the student projects that reflected diverse solutions that address real-world challenges.
  • First Place – Type-Along – JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX)
  • Second Place – Locked – JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX)
  • Third Place – Iskove – JA of the Space Coast (Satellite Beach, FL)

• Delta Social Impact Award: Awarded to the student team that created a solution to address a local, national, or global social concern.
  • F.L.I.N. Company – JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX)

• FedEx Global Possibilities Award: Awarded to the student company that best exhibits the principles of global connectivity.
  • SugarWare – JA of South Florida (Ft. Lauderdale, FL)

• ICE 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.
  • SugarWare – JA of South Florida (Ft. Lauderdale, FL)

• Johnson & Johnson STEM Innovation Award: Awarded to the student team that used innovative science, technology, engineering, and math applications to create positive community impact.
  • Intellect Inc. – JA of New York (New York, NY)

• RSM Market Makers Award: Awarded to the student team that accumulates the highest net worth by building and managing an investment portfolio during the JA Stock Market Challenge®
  • Asset Avengers – JA of Northwestern Ohio (Toledo, OH)

• Janus Henderson JA Titan of Business: Awarded to the student team that demonstrated the best financial decisions about production, marketing, research and development (R&D), and corporate social responsibility (CSR) for their company.
  • Synery – JA of Wisconsin (Milwaukee, WI)

• Jim Sweeny Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence: An award for an individual who demonstrates outstanding entrepreneurial spirit.
  • Zea Khoja of F.L.I.N. Company – JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX)

Thank you to each of our award sponsors as well as Chick-fil-A, Inc., the Pacific Life Foundation, Staples, the Achievement Foundation, Dime, Emerson, Honeywell, and The Hartford for their generous support in ensuring the success of NSLS. We are deeply grateful for their commitment to empowering young entrepreneurs and fostering a culture of innovation. 

The 15 JA Company of the Year finalist teams that participated were:

• Creations For A Cause - JA of Greater St. Louis (St. Louis, MO)
• Crochet in a Box - JA of Central Maryland (Baltimore, MD)
• EfficiKit - JA of Southeastern Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, PA)
• EVO (Elkins Very Own) - JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX)
• F.L.I.N Company - JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX)
• FlameGuard - JA of North Central Ohio (Canton, OH)
• InnoVision - JA of Central Upstate New York (Rochester, NY)
• Mission Monarch - JA of North Central Ohio (Canton, OH)
• Nature's Knitwear - JA of Greater Boston (Boston, MA)
• Power Up Games - JA of San Diego County (San Diego, CA)
• Relataspace - JA North (Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN)
• Rise and Grind - JA of Central Maryland (Baltimore, MD)
• Scribble Sprout - JA of Northern California (San Francisco, CA)
• SugarWare - JA of South Florida (Fort Lauderdale, FL)
• Vis-a-Vis - JA of Greater Miami (Miami, FL)

The 10 JA Social Innovation Challenge finalist teams that participated were:

• Bamboo Dynasty - JA of New York (New York, NY)
• BioBlend - JA of Greater Miami (Miami, FL)
• GellyBuddies – JA of the Space Coast (Satellite Beach, FL)
• Intellect Inc. - JA of New York (New York, NY)
• Iskove - JA of the Space Coast (Satellite Beach, FL)
• Locked - JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX)
• Pitch - JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX)
• Sign Lens - JA of New York (New York, NY)
• Type-Along - JA of Southeast Texas (Houston, TX)
• Water Warriors - JA of Greater Miami (Miami, FL)

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 learning experiences 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. Additionally, Junior Achievement is expanding its reach to 18-to-25-year-olds to provide young adults with critical life skills, as well as to pre-K youth to ensure children get a solid head start. Today, JA reaches more than 4.4 million students per year in 102 markets across the United States as part of 12.5 million students served by operations in more than 100 other countries worldwide. Junior Achievement USA is a member of JA Worldwide. For more information, visit www.ja.org.

SOURCE Junior Achievement USA