FUTURE FOUNDERS

The CEC’s Youth Entrepreneurship Program

A recent Gallup Poll showed that 69% of high school students want to start a business, but 84% of those surveyed report that they have no preparation to do so (Consortium for Entrepreneurship Education). Also, a US Department of Commerce study showed that 85% of students surveyed said US schools should teach more about entrepreneurship and starting a business. Unfortunately, only 27% were able to take a class that taught entrepreneurship.

In addition, a Kauffman Foundation survey of black youth (ages 14-19) indicated that "black youth more so than white youth strongly desire to start businesses and want more entrepreneurship taught in their schools." Another Kauffman study found that fewer Hispanic and African American students than Caucasian students knew an entrepreneur.

To address the increasing demand for entrepreneurial exposure and education, the Chicagoland Entrepreneurial Center (CEC), the Motorola Foundation and the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) launched the Future Founders program in 2005. The program was created to give motivated high-school students in Chicago’s underserved neighborhoods the opportunity to learn about and even experience entrepreneurship during the school year from some of the city’s most successful entrepreneurs. Our goal is to expose students to entrepreneurial careers and have them create complete business plans.

Since the program’s inception, the CEC has partnered with five schools on the South and West Sides of Chicago: Gwendolyn Brooks College Prep, ACE (Architecture, Construction & Engineering) Technical Charter High School, Chicago Vocational Career Academy (CVCA), Dunbar Vocational Academy and North Lawndale College Prep. In the 2007-08 school year, we are working with classes at three schools: Brooks, ACE and CVCA. The majority of the students in the program are African American and Hispanic.

Program Overview

The program consists of four highly interactive, hands-on areas of discovery:

1. Exposure to the benefits of careers in entrepreneurship
2. Mentoring by entrepreneurs, sponsors, partner organizations and the CEC to help students create and present viable business plans
3. Participation in business plan competitions
4. Continued entrepreneurial exposure for the program’s top students through a summer business camp

The program commences with Big Idea Day in October, providing students with the opportunity to interact with successful entrepreneurs and develop innovative business concepts. Our Annual Citywide Business Plan Competition & Luncheon in May is our culminating event.

Program Press

• Scenes from Future Founders Award Ceremony – BusinessPOV.com (5/24/07)
• "Brooks Students Win Competition" – Chicago Tribune (6/19/06)
• "Chicago Entrepreneurs Get Big Motorola Boost" – Chicago Sun-Times (10/3/05)

Sponsors

Strategic Partners

Contact Information:

Scott Issen
(312) 494-6734
scott@chicagolandec.org