Today is the day! The FIRST day of the FIRST Free Enterprise Leadership Challenge in 2014. I look forward to coming back every summer and spending time high school students eager to learn and grow.
FELC is in full swing and our students and staff have officially survived our first day of the program. All of the students are energetic and eager to get started socializing and working together in teams!
Once everyone was checked in, moved in and settled, the students gathered for orientation at the George A. Batte, Jr. Fine Arts Center to hear from the director of the Free Enterprise Leadership Challenge, Brian Rogers. Brian is also the chief operating officer at the Jesse Helms Center. Parents and students were briefed on expectations for the week and then the fun really began! Each of our awesome FELC counselors introduced themselves and the students split into their groups which would become their co-workers, their peers, their teammates and their partners for the rest of the program. These student groups aren't just fellow campers - they're business associates! Time to see these bright students step out of their box.This week, we have four different business industries:
- Entertainment
- Publications
- Concessions
- Style
Here's the kicker! We have SIX companies! One company will be publications and one will be style while TWO of them are entertainment and TWO are concessions - let the competition begin! The free enterprise system is built on healthy, creative competition and I'm excited to see what these students bring to the table to be successful.
Just like any company in society today, the students elected their leaders, their decision makers. Each company is required to elect a president, a vice president, a chief financial officer and a purchaser. After that, many groups create other offices for their teammates to specialize in with their unique talents! Some companies elect a public relations officer or a secretary. After that, many of the groups chose to divide their teams into committees or subgroups. Bottom line...these companies operate however they may choose! It's all up to them to decide how they want to lead their team and succeed.
After they have their team leaders, it's time to decide what products or services each company wants to provide. The students spent 4 hours brainstorming, developing a game plan, and putting together their business until it was time for lights out!
These students are offering REAL products or services to generate a REAL profit! It's a real competition - with both a winner and a loser and everything in between. These students are our future! This entire program is designed to teach students what it takes to be a leader in the free enterprise business world.
The FELC teams this week have ALREADY come so far just in one night! We have events scheduled including movie nights, water-balloon dodgeball, video game tournaments and many, many more! Concessions is in full-force planning food and beverage snacks, publications is hard at work selling advertisements and style has got some amazing ideas to sell personalized t-shirts!
Just like any company in society today, the students elected their leaders, their decision makers. Each company is required to elect a president, a vice president, a chief financial officer and a purchaser. After that, many groups create other offices for their teammates to specialize in with their unique talents! Some companies elect a public relations officer or a secretary. After that, many of the groups chose to divide their teams into committees or subgroups. Bottom line...these companies operate however they may choose! It's all up to them to decide how they want to lead their team and succeed.After they have their team leaders, it's time to decide what products or services each company wants to provide. The students spent 4 hours brainstorming, developing a game plan, and putting together their business until it was time for lights out!
The FELC teams this week have ALREADY come so far just in one night! We have events scheduled including movie nights, water-balloon dodgeball, video game tournaments and many, many more! Concessions is in full-force planning food and beverage snacks, publications is hard at work selling advertisements and style has got some amazing ideas to sell personalized t-shirts!
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