District Five students place in state business plan competition

The Virtual Enterprise (VE) team at Spring Hill High School placed 3rd in the South Carolina Virtual Business Plan Competition. The team also placed in the top 10% of all VE Firms in the World for their Elevator Pitch.

Spring Hill High School VE team members include the following: Savannah Easterling (Chief Executive Officer), Macie McGuire (Assistant Chief Executive Officer), Julia Howell (Human Resources Chief Operating Officer), Gordon Lin (Chief Financial Officer), Alannah Howard (Chief Marketing Officer), Isaiah Franco (Information Technology). Other firm members include: Cody Bennett, Jordyn Boulware, Bre Asia Brown-Howell, Brody Daulton, Shawn Green, Jayden Harris, Corryn Hudson, Daniel Lavallee, Jaylin Lopez, Emma Miller, Luke Phillips, Juwan Washington, Kamille Whaley, and Jonathan Wrightenberry.

This year the students designed a product called InstaTrack. InstaTrack is a company that sells stickers with nanotechnology built-in that you place on items you might lose or misplace.

“I am so very proud of these amazing students,” Sherry Stone, Spring Hill High School Virtual Education coordinator said. “It takes so much time and effort to do VE the right way and these kids do it right! They talk and work outside of class to make sure deadlines are met and projects get completed on time. We may see a future CEO out of this group for sure!”

Virtual Enterprise is an international program designed to prepare students for the various demands of the modern workplace. In a simulated business environment, students learn about human resources, accounting, product development, marketing, sales, and website development. The program allows students to experience, in a simulated business environment, all aspects of being an employee in today’s business environment. With links to nearly 3,000 firms around the world, VE exposes students to different cultures, business practices and currencies and provides students a broader international perspective.

The Business Plan Competition is an opportunity for students to showcase their skills, abilities and knowledge about business, financial practices, global economic conditions, and the industry that their virtual business represents through written business plans and oral presentations.

Students were asked to present a written business plan and oral presentation to a team of judges and educators during the competition. The judge and educators then critiqued their entries and evaluated their responses to a follow-up Q&A session.

“I am so very proud of these students,” said School District Five’s Career and Technical Education Director David Prigge. “Their dedication shows that hard work pays off and that careers are born here.”

Photo Caption: Julia Howell, Macie McGuire, Isaiah Franco, Savannah Easterling, Alannah Howard, and Juwan Washington