The ESI summer camp will help these teens develop those business ideas. With the success of the EntrepreneurShip Investigation (ESI) Youth Entrepreneur pilot program which was taught at the Phillipsburg Middle School this last semester, Discover Phillipsburg Main Street and the E-Center in Phillipsburg will again be partnering to provide this camp.

This camp will incorporate the ESI materials into its activities. The ESI is an exciting, interactive, and comprehensive curriculum project designed for youth, ages 10 – 19. ESI is truly a pioneer in the field of youth entrepreneurship education. It was developed with four audiences in mind: 4 – H clubs, middle and high schools, youth and community organizations.

Campers will be grouped together by interest and will use handout materials and computers to investigate potential business ideas. They will take their business ideas and actually purchase the materials necessary to produce a product during camp. As they produce a small supply of these products they will learn more about entrepreneurship, build their leadership skills and hone their passions. A business showcase will be held on the last day of camp to sell the products that they have made.

EntrepreneurShip Investigation camp is scheduled for June 5th through the 8th (Tuesday through Friday) from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm. It will be held at the E-Center in Phillipsburg.

The camp is open to students who have completed 5th through 10th grades, and is limited to 15 students. Camper’s lunches, curriculum and instructor fees will be provided by the grant funds. This camp is funded in part by the Dane G. Hansen Foundation and the Foundation for Rural Services. 

Cost of the camp is $75.00 per camper.  These funds will be used to purchase the supplies the youth needs to develop his/her product.

To register or to learn more information, click on the link below.

REGISTER HERE

Contact Kera Nuckolls, Director of Discover Phillipsburg Main Street at 785-540-4284 or dpmainstreet@ruraltel.net

or Bridgit Smith, Director of the Phillipsburg E-Center at 785-540-4110 or pccf@ruraltel.net

Did you know? Statistics reveal only 1% of students are entrepreneurs. In the EntrepreneurShip Investigation (ESI) pilot program in Phillipsburg, we had 10% of the students develop a business plan and product to sell!

A public/private partnership between Phillipsburg Middle School, Discover Phillipsburg Main Street and the Entrepreneurial Center in Phillipsburg  introduced entrepreneurship to fifty-one eight grade students this semester.  

The nationally recognized EntrepreneurShip Investigation (ESI) curriculum was developed through the University of Nebraska, in Lincoln. This curriculum has been taught by Mrs. Jackie Abell and Mr. Jim Smith middle school health instructors. It is an exciting, interactive, and comprehensive curriculum project designed for youth. These instructors began teaching this curriculum in January with an investigation into the businesses and business owners in our  own community. Included in this portion of the class were local business owners who went into the classroom to share their own experiences about being entrepreneurs.

After learning about our local small businesses, the students then had the chance to investigate themselves.  Learning about their talents, interests and hobbies; these students were then able to recognize what entrepreneurial skills they already possessed.

Additional class work included investigating the risks of small businesses, looking at the possibilities of what the students wanted to be when they grow up, and our changing community and world.  “I haven’t done anything like this before. I like it because it’s unique.” stated Termarian Snell who is developing the business JewelTastic.  

After looking at the community and themselves, students then investigated numerous topics surrounding entrepreneurship. They learned the value of building a good reputation, dressing like a pro, the value of time and getting control of your time as well as selling your big idea. 

Matt Ma hathey the owner of Outstanding Origami stated, “I think it is neat that we started this. This peaked my interest.  At first, the assignments really made me mad.  They were hard.  It makes me think more than science and I hate science.”

After completion of book two, it was decision time for these students. Did they see themselves as entrepreneurs and were they ready to make the commitment, take the risk to see if they could succeed as a youth entrepreneur?

Those who see themselves as entrepreneurs, have embarked on a new journey.  The last week these students have developed business ideas, names and slogan. This week and next they will be working on business plans and marketing. The semester class will end with a showcase of these youth businesses.

Statistics show on the average 1% of all youth are entrepreneurs. Phillipsburg once again showed that our students are above average. Six of the students committed to developing their business, showcasing it and submitting a business plan. The businesses are as follows:

Outstanding Origami: Everyt hing folds into place is being developed by Matt Mahathey.  Christina’s Tasty Temptations: There’s no place like home……made cookies; owner Christina Wente.  JewelTastic: Accessories that make you look fantastic; by designer Temarian Snell and Cuties’ Cupcakes: Almost too cute to eat; baked by Alex Babcock and Chelsea Lumpkin.

On May 9, 2012 these budding entrepreneurs were guests on the Tadpole and KKAN/KQMA radio station in Phillipsburg. Sharing in their own words, what they have experienced this semester through the ESI course. On Thursday May 10th in downtown Phillipsburg these students showcased their businesses.  All four businesses sold out of product after an hour and a half of sales.   

This partnership has been partially funded by the Dane G. Hansen Foundation through the

E-Center, Discover Phillipsburg Main Street and the Foundation for Rural Services. 

On June 20th, 2012 in a 3 – hour workshop hosted by Discover Phillipsburg Main Street, Jon Schallert explains how business reinvention is critical for small business survival and how reinventing ones business into a Consumer Destination is the most profitable path for an independent business owner. The registration cost for this national recognized training workshop is $55.00 which includes lunch.

To create this workshop, Jon interviewed the top owners of Destination Businesses in the country who survived the worldwide recession, and through reinvention, came out stronger and more profitable than before. Jon will show examples of the major changes these owners made to their businesses, including both strategic and tactical changes that allowed them to succeed.

Attendees will hear inspiring stories of business owners who reinvented their businesses, but they
will also leave with a concrete list of changes they will want to make to their businesses.

Attendees will also learn:

• Why business reinvention is more than making a few small changes to one’s business
• The five “Marketing Foundations” that consumers of today find credible, and why typical advertising isn’t on the list
• The one question that must be answered before you’ll ever beat a larger competitor
• How to use several little-known resources that pull in top customers for minimal dollars
• How to use your company’s history to pull the media and customers to your business
• How one can spend less time on using social media while elevating your business as an “expert” in your field
• How to get a customer to love your business in the first 7 seconds after they enter your doors
• How to use discount marketing that maintains profit margins and cements customer loyalty, if you absolutely insist on using discount marketing
• How to leverage one asset in your business that no one else has, that will instantly set your business and interior décor apart from your competition
• How to add real value to your business so when you decide to sell it, you get the largest possible payoff

Following this 3-hour workshop, Jon will answer business questions from the audience in a Marketing Roundtable discussion.

Jon Schallert is the only consultant in the world teaching businesses and communities how to reinvent themselves into “Consumer Destinations”. Jon speaks to thousands annually on his proprietary 14-step Destination Business strategy which he developed after more than twenty six years of on-site consultations with small business owners.

Owners also learn Jon’s Destination principles by attending his 2½ day Destination Business BootCamp in Colorado, and by participating in his online training network, Destination University

June 20th Schedule:

Registration/Check-In: 7:30 – 8:30:

Workshop begins: 8:30 – 10:00 a.m. Part 1
Break 10:00 – 10:15 a.m.
Workshop continues: 10:15 – 11:45 a.m. Part 2
Lunch Break: 12 noon – 1 p.m (Included in registration)
Marketing Roundtable: 1:00 – 2:30 p.m.
BootCamp Group Meeting: 3:00 – 4:30 p.m.

CLICK Here to Pre-Register

Students: (Far left, going right)

Back: Patrick Means, Benjamin Roberts, Sheila Roberts, Michael Miller, Stephanie Austin, Debbie Dillon

Front: Jeremy Rothe, Krystal Rothe, Kelly Moffatt, Janet Means, Nikki Brobst

Not Pictured: Gary Brandon, Kelly Grismore

If you were out Saturday night, March 24^th - you most likely saw a lot of women, shopping bags and pink. The Promotion

committee of Discover Phillipsburg Main Street hosted a Girl’s Night Out downtown and asked retailers to be open late from 4:30 to 8:30 p.m. and invited home based businesses to join them! The event brought over 150 women to downtown Phillipsburg. “Ladies Night Out was reminiscent of days gone by when people would come to town on Saturday night to do their shopping.  They’d run into friends and neighbors they’d not seen for awhile and just stop and chat for a bit.  It was great!,” says Bobbi Delzer of Sawyer’s Ace Hardware.

Following the event, we invited everyone to stop by the Bakery from 8:00 to 9:30 p.m. to have their receipts tallied, draw for a door prize, grab a glass of wine and “wine’d down”. Congratulations to Donna Winchell and Sally Thomas for being our top shoppers during the event. They each won a bag of gift certificates and goodies, donated by our retailers worth $150 each. Brandy Christy’s name was drawn to win $75 in gift certificates, also donated by our retailers. Over 15 door prizes which were provided by home based businesses were given away to the shoppers during the Wine’d Down event. Thank you to everyone who came out to shop and a big thank you to our retail and home based businesses!

Participating Business and Sponsor’s Include:

Couli Kaffee, The Chubby Pickle, Pizza Hut, Hugunin’s Liquor, Third Street Bakery, Rollin J Boutique, Hairs to You, Kustom Kreations, An Angel’s Paradise, The Shepherd’s Mill, Robinson Greenhouse, Sawyer’s Ace Hardware, White’s Foodliner, Scott-McCoppin, Ultimate Image and Hair Etc.

ROZ Commercial

The ESI curriculum was developed through the University of Nebraska, in Lincoln.  EntrepreneurShip Investigation is an exciting, interactive, and comprehensive curriculum project designed for youth, ages 10-19. Through exciting activities, case studies and current technology, students are transformed into budding entrepreneurs! Not only that, students will learn that they can do all of these things without moving to a large city.  This curriculum will be presented to fifty-one eighth grade students at the Phillipsburg Middle school,  taught three days a week by instructors Mrs. Jackie Abell and Mr. Jim Smith. 

The funding awarded by the FRS grant program will provide seed money to any viable business plans that may arise from this curriculum.  “We are excited about partnering with Discover Phillipsburg Main Street and the Phillipsburg Middle school for this Youth ESI program. How exciting to know through the FRS grant, we will be able to offer seed money for those students who are serious about becoming youth entrepreneurs,” stated Bridgit Smith, Director of the Phillips County Community Foundation.

In addition to the seed money, a portion of this grant is will be used to fund the Train the Trainer session.  This session is scheduled for December 9th at the E-Center in Phillipsburg. The training is not only open to the Phillipsburg teachers, but is also to anyone in the region interested in developing their own ESI program.

The Foundation for Rural Service provides annual grants for programs in rural communities served by NTCA Members. Their grants support local efforts to build and sustain a high quality of life in rural America.

For a list of other projects that were awarded funding, please visit:

http://www.frs.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=5410&Itemid=2423

For more information, please contact Kera Nuckolls, Executive Director of Discover Phillipsburg Main Street at (785) 540-4284 or dpmainstreet@ruraltel.net  or Bridgit Smith, Executive Director of the Phillips County Community Foundation at (785) 540-4110 or pccf@ruraltel.net .