(ARA) -- For every child who's ever dreamed of a career in sports or entertainment, Junior Achievement Inc. aims to broaden his/her horizons via a new program that introduces business management opportunities in both fields.
The goal of the program, titled Building Achievement through Sports and Entertainment (B.A.S.E.), is to show students the myriad of career options available in the front offices and back stages of sports and entertainment businesses.
"Not every young person who likes basketball is going to be the next Michael Jordan," says Stedman Graham, author of "The Ultimate Guide to Sport Event Management Marketing" and a former player in the European Professional Basketball League. "But if we can take these young peoples' interest in sports and entertainment and show them how they could become a Director of Marketing for the Bulls, we can open a world of opportunity to them."
Graham, who is chairman and CEO of S. Graham & Associates, recently launched a fund-raising campaign for JA B.A.S.E. As the project's fund-raising Chair, he has committed $10,000 and will actively recruit members of the sports and entertainment communities to support the program.
"This is an exciting initiative that would not be possible without Stedman's leadership," says James B. Hayes, president and CEO of Junior Achievement Inc. "JA B.A.S.E. will help us make business careers relevant to young people who might not otherwise know these kinds of jobs exist."
JA B.A.S.E. will utilize volunteers from the management ranks of sports and entertainment organizations who will share their experience with students. The goal is to have pilots of the program running by the fall of 1998.
Junior Achievement is the largest and fastest-growing nonprofit economic education organization in the world. Each year, over 2.7 million elementary, middle and high school students across the U.S. participate in JA programs. An additional 1,000,000 young people in 100 countries also take part in JA programs on an annual basis. According to Hayes, Junior Achievement plans to quadruple the number of students it reaches annually by the year 2005. "Junior Achievement programs currently impact 2.7 million young people each year in this country," says Hayes. "Our objective is to reach 11 million annually in just eight short years."
The goal of 11 million, or 20% of all American school-aged children, is outlined in the organization's strategic plan, ImpACT 2005. The plan, which was developed with the assistance of management consultants McKinsey & Co., will utilize new technologies, as well as new volunteer recruiting and fund raising methods, to reach the ImpACT 2005 goals.
Through Junior Achievement programs, students are taught to understand and appreciate free enterprise by classroom volunteers from the business community worldwide.
For More Information Contact: Ed Grocholski, Director-Public Relations, Tel. (719) 540-6271 or Shawn Huff, Manager-Sports Development, Tel.(719) 540-6217.
Courtesy of Article Resource Association, www.aracopy.com
