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2011-2012 News Releases
August 25, 2011
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Tammy Dodderidge, communications manager, (913) 279-2225 or
Vernon Birmingham, Youth Entrepreneurs of Kansas, (913) 745-8096
Schlagle Student Preparing for National Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge
Danielle Stegall is not afraid of speaking in public. In fact, she rather enjoys it. This will be an advantage to her as she prepares for possibly the biggest presentation of her life.
The F.L Schlagle High School senior is a finalist in the 2011 Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) National Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge. The event will take place October 6 in New York City.
The competition brings together top students from throughout the nation who will present individual business plans they created in their high school classrooms. Students will be judged by a panel and the student with the top plan will be awarded $10,000 in venture capital. Danielle is one of 30 students to make the nationals, and the first student from the Kansas City, Kansas Public Schools to advance this far in the competition since it began in the district six years ago.
"I didn't know this would be as big as it has become," Danielle said. "I just thought of this as a project that we get a grade for in class."
Danielle's business plan is called "Amusement Park GPS" and it is exactly that. She believes that amusement parks need GPS systems to help park goers navigate their way to rides and attractions easily.
Having taken many trips with her family to theme parks, including Walt Disney World in Florida, she has experienced the frustration of getting lost while trying to visit the many attractions.
"We would go and never be able to find our way around the park," she recalled. "We would go in circles and were always losing each other."
That's when she came up with the idea, which she shared with her mom. When she found out this year in her business plan class that she would be required to create a proposal for a start-up business, she remembered her idea and put it down on paper.
In preparation for the national competition, Danielle will be fine tuning her business plan with the help of Vernon Birmingham, a Youth Entrepreneurs of Kansas program advisor who works with several school districts in the metro area to implement and carry out the business plan curriculum. Danielle also will be making presentations around the community to practice for the big event.
Does she think she has a shot at winning the top prize? Definitely.
"I have a lot of people standing behind me and supporting me," she said. "And I know that with their help, anything is possible."
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