Contact:
Jodie Woodruff
401-378-0270 mobile
401-752-3507 office
jwoodruff@metmail.org
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THE MET CENTER FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP PRESENTS THE ANNUAL BUSINESS PLAN COMPETITION
Entrepreneurship – 360 DRIVES STUDENTS’ PASSION, LEARNING AND SUCCESS AND HOSTS A COMPETITION FOR $4000
PROVIDENCE – The Met Center for Entrepreneurship will present the Business Plan Competition on Wednesday, March 23rd from 10am to 12noon at The Met’s Public Street campus in the Media & Arts Center. The students of Entrepreneurship-360 (E360) have immersed themselves in the world of business, identified their unique business idea, formulated the ROI (return on investment) and now it is the real deal. Up to $4000 of private investment funds will be awarded. Investors, judges, community members and these talented Met high school student entrepreneurs will all gather for the Center for Entrepreneurship Business Plan Competition. The whole campus is buzzing with excitement for this high impact event.
Throughout the nation, economic and business leaders and educational scholars are calling for an increase in entrepreneurial education to teach initiative, self-regulation, critical thinking, and lifelong learning skills among young people. Students in The Met’s E 360 program learn and/or sharpen their skills in the area of work ethic, self-motivation, determination, confidence, perseverance and the ability to take risk.
“We are so proud of all of our students’ accomplishments at The Met. The Business Plan Competition reflects how real-world learning ignites student passion, learning and success, setting them on a course of lifelong learning and pathways to satisfying careers”, said Dennis Littky, co-founder and co-director of The Met and Big Picture Learning. “We connect our students to entrepreneurs, and through E360 they develop the tools they need to be innovators and entrepreneurs in the 21st century.”
The Metropolitan Regional Career and Technical Center, a Big Picture Learning School, uses a learning model embedded in the philosophy of supporting “one student at a time”, through real world learning that focuses on students’ passions and interests.
The Met’s Entrepreneur 360 (E360) course is a 60-hour program for students supported by NFTE (National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship) during which they learn about concepts and skills to create and design a business and then as a culminating piece, write a business plan. The preliminary round in class has rendered a group of 9 finalists who have been selected to present their proposals to a group of potential investors at the Business Plan Competition on Wednesday, March 23rd.
The judges for the morning will include: Ed Alves, CEO of People Resources; Norris Rutledge, E360 Alumni; Sandra Potter, Bryant College; David Burton, Director, Strategic Procurement, CVS Caremark; and others. Also sitting on the panel of review is Jodie Woodruff, director of The Met Center for Entrepreneurship and Bill Daugherty, Entrepreneurship-360 Chairman.
The Met students and business plans are:
WHAT: The Met, Center for Entrepreneurship Annual Business Plan Competition
WHERE: 325 Public Street, Providence, RI – The Media and Arts Center
WHEN: Wednesday, March 23rd, 10am – 12noon
WHO: Met high school students
WHY: Select business plan finalists to receive investor start-up funds and go on to other business plan competitions for high school youth.
HOW: Supported by The Met and Big Picture Learning.
MORE:
BACKGROUND
The Met Center
The Metropolitan Regional Career and Technical Center is a state funded public school district which serves 690 high school students in six small schools across three campuses in Rhode Island. The locations are: 325 Public Street (South Side) and 362 Dexter Street (West End), Providence, RI and 1 York Street (Tonomy Hill/Newport Heights), Newport, RI. 75% of Met graduates go on to higher education.
Mission – to educate and empower youth through relentless commitment to student-centered learning and personal growth.
Vision – to lead vital change in education and impact our community by producing skilled graduates, lifelong learners, and responsible citizens who enjoy their life and work.
Nancy Diaz Bain, co-director. Dennis Littky, founder and co-director
For more information go to www.metcenter.org
Big Picture Learning
Big Picture Learning is perhaps best known for its innovative school design based on educating one student at a time. Serving underserved, urban students all across America, Big Picture Learning’s high school graduation rate is 92%, with 95% of their graduates gaining acceptance to college. These rates stand out when compared to high school graduation rates for regular public schools in major cities: Chicago – 51%, Denver – 46%, Detroit – 25%, Los Angeles – 45% and New York – 45%.
Currently there are 80 Big Picture Learning schools throughout the United States, all of which focus on student-centered learning. Big Picture Learning schools are also underway or being considered in Australia, the Netherlands, Ireland, The United Kingdom, Canada, Liberia and Israel.
Big Picture Learning’s mission is to lead vital changes in education, both in the United States and internationally, by generating and sustaining innovative, personalized schools that work in tandem with the real world of the greater community. We believe that in order to sustain successful schools where authentic and relevant learning takes place, we must continually innovate techniques and test learning tools to make our schools better and more rigorous. Lastly, we believe that in order to create and influence the schools of the future, we must use the lessons learned through our practice and research to give us added leverage to impact changes in public policy.
For more information go to www.bigpicture.org
Participants and Met School leadership are available for interviews.
Please call Jodie Woodruff (401) 378-0270 to arrange these opportunities.
