|
NEWS RELEASE
For Immediate Release:
July 28, 2010
JUNIOR ACHIEVEMENT STUDENT
COMPANY "WINC" WINS
HP'S RESPONSIBLE BUSINESS AWARD
Innovative young entrepreneurs excel at
business and social responsibility.
Colorado Springs,
Colo.
— At the 2010 North American JA Company of the Year Competition held July
18-21 in Minneapolis, Junior Achievement and HP awarded first-place honors in
the HP Responsible Business Ideas Contest to WINC, a student-company finalist
from Houston, Texas. Contest judges recognized these young entrepreneurs as
having developed the concept that best combined effective business practices
with social and environmental responsibility.
WINC, created by high school students from Spring Woods High School, won the
award with their innovative solar powered lanterns. The judges were impressed
with their comprehensive business model based on green technology. The young
entrepreneurs sold 70 units and made a profit as a company. The team
demonstrated their social responsibility by supporting an international
micro-lending organization which works with entrepreneurs in developing
countries. The students also dedicated time as volunteers at a local elementary
school, delivering JA programs.
"WINC exemplifies HP's vision of a strong commitment to social innovation.
Creating a sense of responsibility while developing entrepreneurial skills is of
paramount importance," said Gabi Zedlmayer, Vice President, Office of Global
Social Innovation, HP. "Through our partnership with Junior Achievement, we can
help educate tomorrow's business leaders to safeguard our world and our shared
economy."
"The HP Responsible Business Award encourages students to see the value of
incorporating social responsibility in successful business practices, and shows
young entrepreneurs how they can do well by doing good. It also helps young
people to more fully realize the opportunities and requirements of work in the
21st-century global marketplace," said Sean C. Rush, president and chief
executive officer of JA Worldwide. "We are grateful to HP for its commitment to
student entrepreneurs and to supporting Junior Achievement as it empowers young
people to own their future economic success by enhancing the relevancy of
education."
The Award is part of the HP Responsible Business Competition, a flagship
program of JA and HP in the U.S., Latin America and Europe. The competition
encourages students in JA entrepreneurship education programs to consider social
and environmental responsibility. More than 200,000 students have benefited from
the HP Responsible Business Competition since its inception in 2006.
About JA Worldwide® (Junior Achievement)
Junior Achievement is the world's largest organization dedicated to inspiring
and preparing young people to succeed in a global economy. Through a dedicated
volunteer network, Junior Achievement provides in-school and after-school
programs for students which focus on three key content areas: work readiness,
entrepreneurship, and financial literacy. Today, 126 individual area operations
reach more than four million students in the United States, with an additional
5.7 million students served by operations in 122 other countries worldwide. For
more information, visit www.ja.org.
###
|