Junior Achievement Teen Entrepreneurs Of Alpha Necessities From Fort Lauderdale Win "JA Company Of The Year"

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo., June 29, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- On Wednesday, June 21, in Washington, D.C., the teen entrepreneurs of Alpha Necessities representing JA of South Florida (Fort Lauderdale Area) were selected from among 15 JA student companies as the JA Company of the Year, powered by The Hartford, at Junior Achievement's (JA) 2017 National Student Leadership Summit (NSLS).

In addition to winning the JA Company of the Year title, The Hartford provided scholarships to students who are in the top three teams and present at the event in Washington D.C. Each team is comprised of five students. First-place team members were awarded a $4,000 scholarship; second-place team members were awarded a $2,000 scholarship; and third-place teammates were awarded $1,000 scholarships.

Junior Achievement's National Student Leadership Summit is a contest of business skills, ingenuity, and innovation that focuses on the accomplishments of the U.S. JA Company Program ^® students, ages 15-19, during the 2016-2017 academic year. Currently reaching more than 12,500 U.S. students who created nearly 700 start-up ventures, JA Company Program students start and run a real business enterprise under the guidance of a volunteer from the local business community. They devise and market a product or service that fills an unmet consumer need and recruit investors for their company.

The student companies competing at the NSLS were assessed on their financial performance, individual team members' personal and professional development, a self-produced commercial about their product or service, their team's live presentation to a panel of business leaders, and on their company's performance at an Entrepreneurship Expo on Capitol Hill attended by Members of Congress. 

"Junior Achievement is empowering these teen entrepreneurs to own their economic success through business proprietorship. It is an exciting opportunity for Junior Achievement students to demonstrate the teamwork, leadership, and innovative thinking that will help them drive success in the business world," said Jack E. Kosakowski, president and chief executive officer of Junior Achievement USA.

"The JA Company of the Year program provides young people with business and financial skills that empower them to be successful," said Diane Cantello, vice president of Corporate Sustainability for The Hartford. "At The Hartford, we strive to make a positive difference in the lives of millions of individuals by building safe, strong and successful communities through our philanthropic investments."

The following awards were presented last week at the Mayflower Hotel, capping the three-day summit. The 2017 JA National Student Leadership Summit awards were presented to:

• JA Company of the Year, Powered by The Hartford: Awarded to the student businesses that most effectively demonstrated their companies' achievements as well as the personal development of each team member.
• 1^st Place: Alpha Necessities, representing JA of South Florida (Fort Lauderdale Area)
• 2^nd Place: knada, representing JA of Southeastern Pennsylvania (Philadelphia Area)
• 3^rd Place: Crimson Café, representing JA of the Upper Midwest (Minnesota and North Dakota)
• ICE NYSE Foundation Best Financial Performance Award: Awarded to the student team that performed the best against a high-level set of criteria, including profitability, investor expectations, employee earnings, product quality, leadership, and operational efficiency.
• knada, representing JA of Southeastern Pennsylvania (Philadelphia Area)
• FedEx Access Award: Awarded to the student team with the best business plan demonstrating potential for job creation, growing small business, and expanding global development.
• Feel The Color, JA of the Chisholm Trail (Fort Worth Area)
• Delta Social Impact Award: Awarded to the student team that created a solution to address a local, national, or global social concern. Companies demonstrated how they applied entrepreneurial thinking to create a realistic, achievable, and innovative solution and described lessons learned from the experience.
• Alpha Necessities, representing JA of South Florida (Fort Lauderdale Area)
• Social Media Award: Recognizes teams that raise the most awareness about the JA National Student Leadership Summit on eligible social media channels.
• CHAAO, representing JA of the Chisholm Trail (Fort Worth Area)
• Good Nashville, representing JA of Middle Tennessee (Nashville Area)
• Pick-Me-Up, representing JA of Greater Washington (DC Area)
• Jim Sweeny Award for Entrepreneurial Excellence: An award for an individual who demonstrates outstanding entrepreneurial spirit.
• Sierra RyanWallick of D2BU, representing JA of Delaware (Wilmington Area)

To view photos and videos from the JA National Student Leadership Summit, please visit www.facebook.com/JuniorAchievementUSA.

About Junior Achievement USA^® (JA)
Junior Achievement is the world's largest organization dedicated to giving young people the knowledge and skills they need to own their economic success, plan for their future, and make smart academic and economic choices. JA programs are delivered by corporate and community volunteers, and provide relevant, hands-on experiences that give students from kindergarten through high school knowledge and skills in financial literacy, work readiness and entrepreneurship. Today, JA reaches more than 4.8 million students per year in 109 markets across the United States, with an additional 5.2 million students served by operations in 100 other countries worldwide. Junior Achievement USA is a member of JA Worldwide. Visit www.ja.org for more information.

About The Hartford
The Hartford is a leader in property and casualty insurance, group benefits and mutual funds. With more than 200 years of expertise, The Hartford is widely recognized for its service excellence, sustainability practices, trust and integrity. More information on the company and its financial performance is available at https://www.thehartford.com. Follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/TheHartford_PR.

The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. operates through its subsidiaries under the brand name, The Hartford, and is headquartered in Hartford, Conn. For additional details, please read The Hartford's legal notice.

SOURCE Junior Achievement USA

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