Young Entrepreneurs Compete in National College Scholarship Competition
Thirty Young Entrepreneurs Academy (YEA!) students nationally have been selected to compete in the 6th Annual Southeast Region Saunders Scholars Competition. Hundreds of business and educational leaders, students and parents will gather to hear America’s top young entrepreneurs aged 11-18 pitch their business plans. The 6TH Annual YEA! Saunders Scholars Southeast Region Semi-Finals competition will kick-off Friday, May 16th, 3:30 p.m., FAU College of Business, DeSantis Pavilion. This culminating event is free and open to the public.
There will be three regional competitions nationwide and the Greater Boca Raton Chamber of Commerce has been selected to host the Southeast Regional Competition in Boca Raton, Florida. The Boca Chamber has been administrating the YEA! program for three years with terrific success. The Northeastern Regional Saunders Competition will be held May 2nd, hosted by Harris Beach, PLLC in Rochester, NY. The Western Regional Saunders Competition will be held in Frisco, TX on May 9th and is hosted by the Frisco Chamber of Commerce.
The top two student businesses from each regional competition will be flown to Washington, DC to compete in the Finals round at America’s Small Business Summit. These young entrepreneurs will be competing to win college scholarships ranging from $25,000 – $50,000 and the opportunity to be on ABC Television’s hit show Shark Tank! Local entrepreneurs, CEOs, and respected community members will be judging this year’s Southeast Region competition, choosing who will be advancing to the finals round.
The Boca Chamber produces the Young Entrepreneurs Academy locally in partnership with Florida Atlantic University. There are 92 YEA! locations in 32 states nationwide. Over a 3 year period, the Boca Chamber Young Entrepreneurs Academy has graduated over 50 CEO’s in the 7th – 12th grades and a national YEA! winner graduated from the Boca Chamber program.
During the course of the nine-month program, more than 80 local businesses become involved with YEA! at various levels. Students work in close cooperation with local business leaders, community leaders and educators who use their personal experiences to demonstrate how to transform their ideas into tangible enterprises that create economic and social value for a better world.
