Students who do not attend college should be exposed to alternative career paths that will afford them opportunities to live fully productive lives by providing for themselves and their families.
One multi-faceted alternative to traditional training programs is the pathway of entrepreneurship. Exposing students to alternative careers as entrepreneurs can open their eyes, minds, and hearts to fulfilling experiences and opportunities that they may be unaware of. Spotlighting entrepreneurship as a career pathway is what The Entrepreneurship Curriculum (EC) aims to do. With the limited time and resources spent exposing students to career paths that don’t require formal training and a college degree, BIZWHIZZ.ORG strives to formalize an approach to exposing students to entrepreneurship as a viable career path by providing them insights into the fundamental skills that are needed to become a successful entrepreneur. EC’s scope and sequence is organized in a way that introduces the fundamental tenets of entrepreneurship. EC also takes the unique approach of providing the students with an opportunity to run their own businesses and to develop hands-on work experiences that will help them determine if entrepreneurship is a sustainable career option for them.
By forging strategic partnerships with a number of merchandisers, we have developed a catalogue of products that students can sell through their businesses. This will empower them to raise funds for their student organizations and/or community youth groups. The students are presented with the opportunity to manage and track their business and personal performance using a proprietary IOS app that helps highlight some of the key management principles that successful entrepreneurs must master. Embedded with specific learning outcomes and anchored in critical thinking skills aligned to entrepreneurship, The Entrepreneurship Curriculum was developed for high school students between the ages of 13 & 18. The aim of the curriculum is to encourage students to explore career paths with a specific focus on entrepreneurship.