CATC volunteers lead third grade class in exploring financial literacy. On April 14, volunteers from CIRI Alaska Tourism (CATC) joined other area business leaders in presenting a special day-long financial literacy and entrepreneurship program to the 440 students of Anchorage’s Muldoon Elementary School. It was Alaska’s first-ever JA in-a-Day, an intensive series of lessons from Junior Achievement that teams teachers with members of the business community to provide a foundation for youth to learn about business, economics and free enterprise.
CATC’s Jennifer McDonald, Reservations Manager, and Lisa Frye, Sales and Marketing Manager, spent the day working with the 22 students of Mr. Bryers’ third grade class. Their hands-on session touched on real-world business topics as far-ranging as city planning, zoning, newspaper-advertising, restaurant entrepreneurship, and basic banking skills.
The JA-in-a-Day event itself was sponsored by CATC’s parent company, CIRI, the Cook Inlet Alaskan Native Corporation, which funded production of JA materials and training. CIRI also provided many of the volunteers, who brought their work and educational experiences to Muldoon’s classrooms.
Facts About Junior Achievement:
Junior Achievement is the world’s largest and fastest growing organization dedicated to educating young people about business, economics and free enterprise. Through age appropriate curricula, JA programs begin at the elementary school level, teaching children how they can impact the world around them as individuals, workers and consumers. JA programs continue through the middle and high school grades, preparing students for additional key economic and workforce issues they will face in the future.
Today, JA reaches nearly four million students through 158 offices nationwide and over one million more students in 108 countries worldwide. JA of Alaska reaches over 8,600 students in 35 communities statewide annually. For more information, visit www.ja.org or alaska.ja.org.
