Jenkins speaks to Rotarians abour volunterring



by Wayne Towner, wtowner@newsandsentinel.com


PARKERSBURG — Junior Achievement, an old school program to teach students about the realities of business, may return to Wood County if the efforts of Monday’s speaker at the Parkersburg Rotary is successful recruiting local business volunteers.

Debrin Jenkins, president of Junior Achievement of West Virginia and the Advantage Valley Inc. in Charleston, spoke to local Rotary members about the program, which was created in 1919 and has been in West Virginia since 1972.

Jenkins said the Junior Achievement program has gone through some changes from what many older people might remember. Up through the 1970s, the program usually involved a group of students organizing as a business, selling stocks and making and selling some type of item, such as cookie sheets.

That changed in the 1980s as families began to have more demands on their free time and litigation concerns arose about students using power tools, she said. A similar program, called the Company Program, is available through Junior Achievement but involves selling already-manufactured items.

Jenkins said the current Junior Achievement program is more instructional and aimed at teaching good financial practices, about entrepreneurship and about ethics more than the hands-on experiences of the past. It is offered for students from kindergarten through 12th grades.

In the program, Junior Achievement teaches children how business works through economics-oriented lessons given by local businesspeople in the classrooms. The lessons include hands-on activities that supplement and reinforce the regular classroom curriculum, she said.

Junior achievement is currently in 27 counties in West Virginia and Jenkins is interested in starting a program in Wood County Schools. She has spoken with Wood County Superintendent Bill Niday and the main thing she is looking for is local businesspeople willing to give up to six hours of their time involving a total of five classroom visits.

“Who better to teach about business than a businessperson themselves,” Jenkins asked.

Through the program, parents and businesspeople volunteer their time and experiences to present Junior Achievement’s materials to students in the classroom. All volunteers are trained by Junior Achievement and the materials are flexible and easy to use. Volunteer consultants are role models to students by helping them develop the desire to stay in school, appreciate lifelong learning, and develop positive attitudes toward work and toward contributing to society, she said.

Not only do volunteers help students learn about the world around them, they sharpen their communication, organization and time management skills, she said. They gain an understanding of the challenge educators face. They benefit from motivating and training tomorrow’s leaders. And, they gain a sense of community and social responsibility.

Jenkins said money is available to bring the Junior Achievement program to Wood County Schools and school officials are ready and willing to have the program. The only obstacle is finding the necessary volunteers from the business community to conduct the programs.

Jenkins said anyone wanting more information or to learn how to volunteer with Junior Achievement can contact her office in Charleston at (304) 346-9753 or online at www.jaadvantage.com.