Agency Details:

Junior Achievement of Southwest Michigan's mission is to inspire and prepare young people to succeed in a global economy, assist them in preparing for the workplace, enable them to become more knowledgeable in financial literacy and provide information and experiences that hopefully will strengthen their desire to explore entrepreneurship.

Description:
Junior Achievement (JA) is the world's largest organization dedicated to inspiring and preparing yound people to succeed in a global economy. Through a dedicated volunteer network, JA provides in-school and after-school programs for students in grade K-12. JA offers educational programs that focus on seven key content areas: business, citizenship, economics, entrepreneurship, ethics/character, financial literacy and career development.

History:
JA was founded in 1919 by Theodore Vail, president of American Telephone and Telegraph; Horace Moses, president of Strathmore Paper Co.; and Senator Murray Crane of Massachusetts. Its first program, JA Company Program, was offered to high school students on an after-school basis. In 1975, the organization entered the classroom with the introduction of Project Business for the middle grades. Over the last 30 years, JA has expanded its activities and broadened its scope to include in-school and after-school students in grades K-12. JA of Southwest Michigan was created in July of 2005, the result of a merger between JA of South Central Michigan (chartered in 1955) and JA of Kalamazoo and Van Buren Counties (chartered in 1972). The new organization serves the counties of Barry, Branch, Calhoun, Kalamazoo, St. Joseph, and Van Buren, along with the communities of Bellevue, Olivet, Otsego and Plainwell. Ja of Southwest Michigan served over 26, 835 students in 1,230 classes during the 2006-2007 school year.

Contact people:

Diane Higley, Administrative Assistant, (phone), (email) Susan Laws, Program Manager, (phone), (email) Jan O'Brien, Program Manager, (phone), (email)

Address:

15189 South Helmer Road Battle Creek, MI 49015 (See a map)

Web Site: http://swmichigan.ja.org

Directions:

Our office is located on South Helmer Road across from the new Meijers.

Last updated on March 16, 2009