VOICE ONE:
Millions of students in the United States are members of JuniorAchievement. Many other students around the world are members of itsinternational group. These organizations teach young people businessskills and economics. I’m Sarah Long.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Steve Ember. Junior Achievement is our report today onthe VOA Special English program, THIS IS AMERICA.
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VOICE ONE:
In Nineteen-Ninety-Eight, a young man named Constancio Larguia(Cone-STAN sea-oh Lahr-GHEE-ah) and a friend opened an Internetstock-trading company in Buenos Aires, Argentina. The company wascalled Patagon (PAH-tag-own) dot com International Limited. Twoyears ago, Mister Larguia and his investors sold Patagon dot com forfive-hundred-twenty-eight-million dollars. Mister Larguia saysskills he learned earlier in Junior Achievement enabled him to startthe successful company.
VOICE TWO:
Junior Achievement has almost two-million members inone-hundred-twelve countries. Programs are offered in thirty-sixlanguages. In the United States, the organization has more thanfour-million members. All these young people develop and operatetheir own businesses.
Junior Achievement began in Nineteen-Nineteen in Springfield,Massachusetts. Horace Moses, a businessman, developed the idea. Hewanted to help young people gain skills they needed to succeed inbusiness after they left school.
The group’s first program was for American high school studentsafter school hours. It taught the young people how businesses areorganized and operated. The students learned by forming their owncompanies. Local business people advised them.
VOICE ONE:
First, the students developed a product. Then they sold shares intheir company. They used this money to buy the materials needed tomake the product. They produced the product and sold it. Theyreturned the profits to the people who bought shares in the company.
For more than fifty years, these Junior Achievement companyprograms met after school. Then, in Nineteen-Seventy-Four, JuniorAchievement began developing programs for use during normal schoolhours.
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VOICE TWO:
Many more young people joined Junior Achievement after theorganization began teaching business skills as part of the schoolday. People from the community teach about businesses – how they areorganized, how products are made and sold. They also teach about theAmerican and world economies – the systems of money, industry andtrade. Students learn how the economy affects their families andtheir communities.Children from five to eleven years old can joinJunior Achievement school programs in the United States. One of thegoals is to show children they are part of a larger world community.They learn about rules and laws. They learn the meaning of beinggood citizens.
VOICE ONE:
Students from twelve to fourteen years old attend middle schoolJunior Achievement classes. They study subjects including trade,world economy, stocks and investment banking. The students learnabout supply and demand, property rights and saving money. Eachweek, a member of the local business community leads discussions andactivities.
Students in this program learn some of the skills they will needto control their own money when they are adults. They learn aboutbudgets and personal and family financial management. They learnabout the use – and misuse – of using credit to buy things.
Another Junior Achievement program for middle school students iscalled the Economics of Staying in School. It is for students whomay be thinking of leaving school before completing high school.Students learn the importance of staying in school. They learn thatworkers with more education get better jobs and earn more money.
VOICE TWO:
Junior Achievement high school programs are for students fifteento eighteen years old. These students learn how to form their owncompanies. They also study many business-related subjects includingeconomics.
In recent months, high school Junior Achievers have studied theeconomic effects of the terrorist attacks on the United States. Theyidentified some of the businesses that were in the World TradeCenter in New York City when it was destroyed in the attack.
For example, MorganStanley is a major American stock-tradingcompany. It had offices in the World Trade Center. Several of itsemployees were killed in the attack. Company officials asked thestudents to consider how damage to a business like MorganStanleycould hurt the worldwide economy. They also asked them to thinkabout how such a company could help improve living conditions forpoor people.
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VOICE ONE:
In Nineteen-Fifty-Five, Junior Achievement established its firstprogram outside the United States. It was in Canada. Soon othercountries joined, including Britain, Mexico and the Philippines. ByNineteen-Eighty-Nine, fifteen countries were teaching young peoplehow to develop their business skills.
In Nineteen-Ninety-One, after the Soviet Union ended, JuniorAchievement spread very quickly. Many former Soviet countrieslaunched programs using Junior Achievement International material.Interest in business development also increased in Latin America,the Caribbean, Africa, and Asia.
VOICE TWO:
To meet this increased need, Junior Achievement International wasestablished in Nineteen-Ninety-Four. The organization has severalgoals. They include helping young people understand the importanceof market economies and the world economy. Another goal is to teachyoung people that businesses should support environmental and socialissues and should operate honestly. Another goal is to help youngpeople understand the importance of education and economics in theirlives.
VOICE ONE:
Some Junior Achievement International programs arenontraditional. For example, last year the organization began a newproject in the Caribbean nation of Trinidad and Tobago. Businesspeople are leading a group at the Youth Training Center in Trinidad.They are teaching business skills to young people jailed for crimes.The goal is to help them gain knowledge to improve their lives.
Some members of Junior Achievement International also work forbetter social conditions. For example, students from Argentinacreated a program to improve the environment.
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VOICE TWO:
About eighty major businesses support Junior AchievementInternational. Supporters include companies like Coca-Cola, AmericanExpress, Reynolds Aluminum and FedEx.Individuals and other groupsalso help. For example, the Citigroup Foundation has provided almosttwo-million dollars to Junior Achievement International sinceNineteen-Ninety-Six.
An organization led by international investor Sir John Templetonrecently gave more than three-hundred-eighty-thousand dollars for aspecial project. The Exxon Mobil Corporation gave an equal amount ofmoney. Junior Achievement International is establishing a GlobalBusiness Ethics Program with this money.
This program will teach students about moral values in thebusiness world. The program will be offered on the Internet WorldWide Web later this year or early next year.
VOICE ONE:
Junior Achievement International has helped improve the lives ofyoung people around the world. One of these is a sixteen-year-oldboy from Zimbabwe whose parents died of AIDS. He must provide forhis three young brothers and sisters. He says at first he thought itwas difficult to start his own business. But he was able to do soafter taking classes from Junior Achievement International. He saysthe program is very important for young people who are unemployedand have a family to support.
VOICE TWO:
You can find more information about Junior AchievementInternational at its Internet Web site,w-w-w-dot-j-a-I-n-t-l-dot-o-r-g. Or you can write to JuniorAchievement International, four-six-zero Abernathy Road, Northeast;Atlanta, Georgia, three-zero-three-two-eight, U-S-A.
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VOICE ONE:
This VOA Special English program was written by Jerilyn Watson.It was produced by Caty Weaver. I’m Sarah Long.
VOICE TWO:
And I’m Steve Ember. Join us again next week for another reportabout life in the United States on the VOA Special English program,THIS IS AMERICA.