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Stock Market Challenge

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thinkBIG! Challenge

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VYEF Skill Building Workshop Day

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Upcycle: Enterprise

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Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Stories

Frequently Asked Questions

2022-2023

VYEF Programs

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Upcycle: Enterprise

Upcycle: Enterprise allows students to explore social entrepreneurship through creative lessons, hands-on prototyping and an opportunity to pitch ideas. Schools can select to participate in a field trip to Upcycle Parts Shop. The two-hour field trip + innovation session focuses on creativity, innovation, developing quick design from upcycled materials, and student report-backs and pitches on prototypes.

Year Round

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Junior Achievement Stock Market Challenge

This high energy event is designed to simulate the excitement of a real-life trading floor. Teams of 4 to 5 students will learn to work together, leverage each other’s strengths, and use critical thinking skills while analyzing news articles and data during a high stakes and fierce competition.

Friday, December 2, 2022

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thinkBIG! Challenge

An online business plan competition open to all high school students in Northeast Ohio, offering more than $9,000 in prizes. Semifinalists will be invited to attend an Executive Coaching Day and receive guidance from entrepreneurial professionals in the Cleveland business community. The Final 4 teams will compete live at the thinkBIG! Summit in March.

Deadline for entries: January 3, 2023 (Online)

Submit an Entry

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Design Challenge Hackathon

The Design Challenge Hackathon will allow students to learn a series of skill sets through workshops, mentorship, and curriculum provided and facilitated by GiveBackHack, an organization which brings people together to develop sustainable solutions to pressing social issues. Students will work in teams to do user validation, develop a business model, and create a minimally viable product. Teams will pitch what they built to the community and judges, with prizes awarded to winning teams.

Date: Friday, February 3, 2023, 8:30 am - 1:15 pm

Register

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Skill Building Workshop Day

The Skill Building Workshop Day will provide students the opportunity to learn a variety of skill sets that contribute to an entrepreneurial mindset. We have partnered with successful community professionals and experts who will provide customized workshops designed to provide key entrepreneurial learnings. Sessions have been purposefully selected to achieve the outcome of strengthening skill sets specific to today’s entrepreneurial landscape.

Wednesday, February 8, 2023, 8:30 am to 1:15 pm

Register

thinkBIG! Summit

Inspirational, one-day conference featuring panels of national and local Gen Z and millennial entrepreneurs, a mini-maker hackathon, the Final 4 thinkBIG! Challenge pitches, awards, prizes, networking and more.

The Summit is open to all students, whether or not they compete in the thinkBIG! Challenge.

Date: Tuesday, March 7, 2023, 9:00 am-1:15 pm

Register

VYEF Skill Building Workshop Day

Entrepreneurial organizations will set up skill-building sessions to train student groups throughout the day. Students will have the opportunity to enhance skill sets in multiple areas of entrepreneurship, network with like-minded students from different schools, and make connections with various stakeholders in the community. Workshop sessions will include design, pitching, leadership, small business information, and many more topics.

Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Stories

Our website features articles on local entrepreneurs to help guide students through their entrepreneurial journey. Our newest interview highlights how Maddie Norman created a summer basketball camp for kids while attending Magnificat High School. Other articles spotlight local leaders like Jessica Dragar from Young Entrepreneur Institute, and local entrepreneur Nicole McGee from Upcycle Parts Shop.

Our Learning Center features curated listings of business networks, resources, templates and entrepreneurial stories for young entrepreneurs and educators.

Learning Center

The Veale Youth Entrepreneurship Forum

The Veale Youth Entrepreneurship Forum (VYEF) was established in 2012 to take high school students beyond the classroom and into the real world of entrepreneurship. Through a collaborative network of educators, business leaders and collegiate-level resources, VYEF offers programs and experiences that allow students to think creatively and analytically, recognize business opportunities, take initiative, solve problems, persist through failure, communicate persuasively, and develop an entrepreneurial mindset.

thinkBIG! Challenge & Summit

The ThinkBIG! Challenge is an online business plan competition open to all high school students in Northeast Ohio. The online competition takes place over a period of months and culminates with the ThinkBIG! Summit, a day-long conference featuring presentations by national and local entrepreneurs.