Entrepreneurship Ideas Fort Smith Public Schools Melinda Briscoe, Northside High School Judy Smith, Southside High School

Business Plan Competition Chamber of Commerce Innovation & Entrepreneurship Center University of Arkansas at Fort Smith Fort Smith Public Schools Purpose: To promote and encourage entrepreneurship in local schools in order to enhance entrepreneurship in the community

Business Plan Competition Weekly goals Rough drafts Last week of October Revisions Complete by Thanksgiving break Business plan presentations 1st week of December Businesses are loaned: $350 if sole proprietorship $500 if partnership Business results presentations Mid-April

Running the Business December to April Weekly goals Weekly reports Required: Enterprise Management II Weekly goals What you plan to do What you actually accomplished Weekly reports Sales Financials

Running the Business Present businesses ideas to community Rotary Club January Chamber of Commerce Business Expo February or March School business fair or career days During lunch in December, January, &/or February Business Results Mid April Report on success and obstacles Awards and scholarship presentations

Teachers Learned……. No more than 2 partners/team Better to have students work in a partnership Keep student projects/plans Need more actual business partners to mentor students Allow time in class for students to work on plans Teach students how to keep accurate records

Students Learned……. It takes many contacts to make a sale Who you choose as a partner makes a difference Time is money Time management Failure does not mean the end Networking makes a difference Get phone numbers and e-mails of potential customers and follow up

What They Say About It……. “….., we learned to deal with failure…We have already faced the biggest element most people fear, now we are eagerly aiming for success.”

What They Say About It……. “The first thing I would do is choose better partners. Partners can be a big asset. But mine turned out to be a big disappointment.”

What They Say About It……. “….., you can sit in a classroom and talk about the mechanics of launching a rocket for weeks on end, but until you actually go out there and light the fuse, you don’t really know what launching a rocket is like.”

Interested? Expect Seek Attend Trial and error learning Community and administrative support Attend Business expos and related activities

Contact Information Melinda Briscoe, Northside High School mbriscoe@fortsmithschools.org Judy Smith, Southside High School jsmith1@fortsmithschools.org Craig Pair, Control Technologies Business partner cpair@controlt.com