Cypress Bay High School Common Cents: A DECA sensation

At the heart of Cypress Bay DECA, a co-curricular that prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in marketing, finance, hospitality, and management, students Carolina Corcino, Charles Barnett, and Nicole Chen initiated an innovative project to benefit upcoming college students at The Bay: Common Cents.

Dedicated to Cultivate, Expand, Navigate, Teach, and Solve, the project prepares high school juniors and seniors to face the realities of financial situations that they will face in their adulthood. High schoolers, who are closest to becoming independent as they will soon venture through college, must have the ability to manage money responsibly. While The Bay has recently made the Personal Financial Literacy course a requirement for sophomores, many juniors and seniors who cannot enroll in the class have little to no knowledge on this topic.

Carolina Corcino, one of the project leaders, shared, “Students in financial literacy courses and those that didn’t get the opportunity to take the course should have equal access to financial literacy education to allow them to be financially responsible and successful in their future.” Common Cents has already done plenty for the school’s chapter. Working alongside the University of Pennsylvania and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the team has been able to create workshops and seminars to educate students on ways that they manage their assets in the most efficient and effective ways.

“We began with three workshops hosted by the University of Pennsylvania in April of the last school year,” project leader Charles Barnett said. “This year, we are continuing our workshops in1 October, focusing on the principles of investing and budgeting basics.” However, not only are they ensuring that students are learning, but they are also guaranteeing that whatever information attendees receive, they are able to apply. To do this, the team incorporated case study challenges, which, according to project leader Nicole Chen, “[Case Study Challenges] give a brief scenario and allow students to implement what they have learned into realistic situations.” The result is in the numbers: an average 63 percent score on knowledge of financial literacy information raised to 83 percent, and this statistic is only expected to grow.

As the school year progresses, Common Cents continues its path further into greatness. As the group continues to make history and prepare students for the future, you can follow their journey on DECA’s Instagram page: @decacbhs.

Cypress Bay High School, Kassandra Fried Principal, 18600 Vista Park Blvd., Weston FL 33326, (754)323-0350.

It’s almost here!!!!

The Sagemont School’s Pride Rock Cafe will reopen its onsite location soon.

Sagemont students are ready for the full reopening of the newly renovated campus café, which will rival any coffee shop around.

Sagemont’s Pride Rock Cafe is a student-run café on campus. When alumni Amanda Correa, Jonathan Medina, and Maggie Roach along with the support of their Principles of Entrepreneurship teacher, Mr. Jarvis Brown, drafted a business plan, they had aspirations of creating a unique space for Sagemont students and they did just that. With a loan from the school administrators, our young entrepreneurs opened the campus café in 2018. This would prove to be the breakfast and lunch destination for Sagemont students to join together. Pride Rock Café is a space that is filled with music, buzzing conversation, and camaraderie.

Over the years, Sagemont has watched its high school entrepreneurship program blossom and create a foundation for many students. With this in mind, Sagemont expanded its entrepreneurial program to include Preschool through 12th grade. With Sagemont’s new curriculum expansion and focus on entrepreneurship, it was only fitting to also renovate the student-run coffee shop. Sagemont’s student cafe has been under construction since October and in a few weeks, the cafe will reopen its doors to a truly remarkable space for our budding entrepreneurs. The newly renovated cafe will feature student-commissioned artwork, music, state-of-the-art technology, and so much more. At its core, Sagemont’s student-driven cafe will continue to be a hub for educating budding entrepreneurs.

Sagemont’s renovated hub for entrepreneurship continues under the faculty leadership of Mr. Jarvis Brown and is currently managed by 11th grader Alexa Frances and an amazing group of middle and high school students who staff the cafe daily.

Entrepreneurs are curious individuals. The Sagemont School is focused on creating an academic environment that encourages students to observe and question the world around them. Observations and inquiry are the cornerstones of academic prowess and entrepreneurship. The fundamental characteristics and skills that are needed to be a successful entrepreneur are the same for being successful in life

As part of Sagemont’s entrepreneurial experience, students learn how production, marketing, finance, human resources, global competition, social, environmental, and legal issues affect business decisions. Learning how to think and question is at the summit of higher-order and critical thinking.

Entrepreneurship teaches self-confidence, problem-solving, creativity, goal-setting, empathy, leadership, grit, and commitment.

To explore a world of entrepreneurship for students in Preschool-12th grade, please visit www.sagemont.com. The Sagemont School 2585 Glades Circle, Weston FL 33326.