McKinley Students Attend Entrepreneurship Camp
May 8, 2018
Eleven students from the McKinley-ALC from St. Cloud Area School District 742, joined by 30 additional students from other ALCs, had the unique opportunity to spend three days in Winona, Minnesota learning about small business ownership. ALC students experienced life on a college campus while being mentored 24/7 by the entrepreneurship students and volunteers from Winona State University (WSU). Several local entrepreneurs shared their stories and their businesses to the students as they hosted tours with question and answer sessions.
The WSU students conducted engaging classes with curriculum emphasizing “The Person as Entrepreneur” incorporating “soft skills” (power skills) needed to succeed beyond high school. This includes an understanding of workplace values and the ability to apply positive character traits while honing their “power skills,” coping skills and resilience. The importance of obtaining additional technical or collegiate education after high school graduation was also stressed. Topics included: surviving or thriving, goal setting, overcoming obstacles, personal differentiation and rebranding yourself. Many students expressed a desire to explore, or reinforced an interest in, attending college or careers in business management & ownership as a result of attending the camp.
For more information and to view a slideshow of this year’s camp go to:https://www.wsuminicamp.com/.
The camp was started by Professor Don Salyards, an economics professor at WSU and entrepreneur himself, whose energy and passion for spreading the expertise was evidenced by his enthusiasm at the camp. Professor Salyards markets the camp toward ALC students who may possess qualities that contribute to successful business development. Many thanks to Don and his contributors, as well as funding from District 742 Equity Services and a Local Education & Activities Foundation (LEAF) Grant, for making this opportunity possible!
Students and staff who attended the camp were: Zakafta A-Farah, Gigi-Renee Anderson, Jade Chandler, Naje Cook, Marco Cuthbert, Zakariye Hussein, Jayion Jones, Meredith Overman, Tyler Plogger, Taryn Sekerka, Emily Vaneps, Cyndi Simson and Dave Masters.