For a young person preparing to leave high school, knowing where to begin can make a career feel possible. Pre-apprenticeship orientation is an important starting point: an introduction to skilled trades, the preparation employers expect and the steps that can turn interest into opportunity. At Junior Achievement of South Florida, the latest student interest findings show why that guidance matters.

In one morning on November 2, 2026, the program collected 245 interest-form responses. Among respondents, 72% reported never having taken a technical class. These preliminary findings measure interest, not enrollment, but they reveal a meaningful opportunity to help young people explore careers they may not yet understand or have experienced firsthand.

For students eager to work, orientation can connect an immediate goal with a longer-term plan. Learning about a trade is the beginning; understanding how preparation leads toward registered apprenticeship and paid employment helps students see what comes next. It also creates space to discuss practical needs, from resumes to transportation, that can influence whether a young person is able to follow through.

Junior Achievement of South Florida’s six-month Pre-Apprenticeship Program combines hands-on learning, industry-recognized certifications, employer exposure and career readiness. Its published preparation includes interviewing, communication, teamwork and problem-solving. Past experiences shared on the organization’s LinkedIn page show that connection in action: students visited Port Everglades, Disney Cruise Line and other maritime employers to explore workplaces and meet industry professionals.

That preparation also offers a natural connection to National Entrepreneurship Month. A skilled trade can become the foundation for a future business, whether a repair service or a contracting company. Technical ability is only part of that journey. Understanding customers, solving problems and communicating clearly matter to both a reliable employee and a business owner.

Junior Achievement of South Florida entrepreneurship learning emphasizes identifying opportunities, creating value and solving problems. Locally, the Pre-Apprenticeship Program’s published content includes customer communication, estimates and work orders. Together, these priorities illustrate how career preparation can introduce the habits and business practices a young person may later build upon as an entrepreneur.

Help turn student interest into opportunity. Business owners and industry professionals can share their expertise, introduce students to their workplaces or explore ways to support career preparation with Junior Achievement of South Florida. Visit JASouthFlorida.org/preapp/ to learn about the program and how to get involved.

An entrepreneurial mindset begins with recognizing a problem and believing you can help solve it. At Charles W. Flanagan High School, 3DE by Junior Achievement gives students opportunities to put that mindset into practice, connecting classroom learning with challenges from the business world.

The school’s culminating events bring that connection into focus through the NSU Case Challenge for ninth graders and the City Home Case Challenge for tenth graders. Each event marks the final touchpoint of a five-week case cycle. Business partners coach students on their proposed solutions during week three, then return as judges as the top three teams compete to present the best business case solution.

That return visit matters. Partners give students an opportunity to build on coaching and share their thinking with professionals who bring real-world perspectives. Their involvement sends a powerful message: students’ ideas deserve attention, their hard work has value, and their potential is worth investing in.

3DE makes these experiences part of a broader approach to high school learning. The 3DE model integrates business case challenges into the academic experience, helping students develop critical thinking, problem-solving and collaboration skills. Students connect what they learn in school with decisions and opportunities beyond the classroom.

During Entrepreneurship Month, that connection is especially meaningful. Developing a business solution calls for many of the habits entrepreneurs rely on: understanding a need, considering different approaches, working with others and explaining why an idea can succeed. Flanagan’s case challenges give students a setting to practice those habits, with guidance from people who use them in their professional lives.

The entrepreneurial connection continues as students advance. Junior Achievement of South Florida’s 3DE program gives eleventh graders the opportunity to launch and run their own businesses with support from volunteer mentors and coaches. In twelfth grade, students apply their learning through a year-long consulting project with a local business. Early case challenges help lay the groundwork for those experiences.

This year, 3DE will serve approximately 600 students across four Broward County public high schools. Each partnership helps more young people explore what they can contribute, whether their future includes starting a business, leading a team or solving a challenge in their community.

Help students put their ideas into action. Join Junior Achievement of South Florida as a 3DE case challenge coach, judge or business mentor. Your experience can help students strengthen their thinking and see themselves as future leaders and entrepreneurs. Explore opportunities at JASouthFlorida.org/volunteer

NATIONAL ENTREPRENEURSHIP MONTH | NOVEMBER 2026

An idea can become a business when a young person has the skills and support to act on it. This November, National Entrepreneurship Month offers an opportunity to recognize how Junior Achievement helps students explore business ownership and practice the decisions that turn an idea into something real.

Across the Junior Achievement network, entrepreneurship education gives students a chance to learn by doing. Through JA Company Program, high school students identify a community need or problem, develop a business venture, and work together to bring it to life. Volunteers and mentors guide them as they make business decisions, collaborate with teammates, and communicate with the people involved in their company.

These experiences make entrepreneurship tangible. Students can begin to see themselves as people who have something valuable to offer, while practicing skills that matter whether they eventually own a business or contribute to someone else’s.

The long-term potential is reflected in national alumni research. In a December 2025 Ipsos survey of 1,005 Junior Achievement alumni ages 22 to 44, 59% said they had started or owned a business because of their Junior Achievement experience. In the same survey, 90% said Junior Achievement helped improve their critical-thinking skills. These are alumni-reported outcomes, offering a view of how former students connect their experiences with their adult lives.

For alumnus Mike Prior, that connection began in high school. Prior built and sold solar-powered music boxes through a Junior Achievement program as a freshman. Soon afterward, he started his first business at age 15 with the goal of buying a car. The business eventually employed four people, and he sold it for a profit during his senior year.

Prior later went on to establish his own financial advisory firm. He credits the financial education and business skills he learned through Junior Achievement with helping spark his entrepreneurial ambition. His story shows how an early opportunity to practice business can become a starting point for pursuing it beyond the classroom.

For our South Florida community, the opportunity is to help more young people recognize their potential and develop the preparation to pursue it. Supporting entrepreneurship education can help students explore another path toward economic independence, while encouraging the problem-solving and initiative that communities need.

Help a student’s business idea take its next step. This National Entrepreneurship Month, volunteer with Junior Achievement of South Florida and share your experience to help young people build the skills and confidence to become tomorrow’s entrepreneurs. Explore volunteer opportunities.

What would our country and our community look like without the freedom to build a business? Without people willing to take a risk, bring an idea to life and create opportunities for others?

Think about the businesses we rely on, the people they employ and the problems they solve. Behind each one is someone who saw a need and decided to do something about it.

For me, entrepreneurship brings back memories of my uncle’s pizza place in Brooklyn.

After serving with the NYPD, he took a different path and opened a business. As a young person, I didn’t understand everything that went into being an entrepreneur, but I vividly remember watching him with his customers. He wanted people to feel welcome and enjoy their food and experience.

I remember seeing how hard he worked to keep the business going well and how he would try new ideas for the menu. I also remember walking around the neighborhood with him and my cousins, handing out flyers at people’s doors to get the word out. There was no social media back then!

Looking back, I was learning lessons without realizing it. Focus on your customers. Be willing to try something new. Take pride in what you offer. Put in the work to succeed.

Those lessons have stayed with me. While I didn’t start Junior Achievement of South Florida, I think it’s critical for every CEO to bring an entrepreneurial mindset to a business. Creating a vision, building a team, finding resources and trying new approaches are all part of moving our mission forward.

November is National Entrepreneurship Month, and it reminds me why these early experiences matter. Young people need opportunities to see how an idea becomes a business and what it takes to keep it going.

JA’s history is rooted in that belief. Beginning with the JA Company Program in 1919, students learned by starting and running real businesses. Today, that learning continues here through JA Fellows, where students develop, source, market and sell a product or service, manage finances and work as a team to create a successful business.

They learn that a good idea needs a plan. That customers have choices. That setbacks require adjustments. And that their talents, passions and skills can create something of value.

At JA, we are working to accelerate economic mobility and build economic prosperity. Entrepreneurship education helps young people see business ownership as a possibility and gives them skills they can use wherever their careers take them.

My uncle’s pizza place was like a classroom for me. Through JA, we can give more young people that same chance to learn, try and discover what they’re capable of building. Our country’s next chapter of innovation and opportunity depends on young people who are prepared to help write it.

You can help. Become a mentor in JA Fellows, our entrepreneurship program, and share your experience as students build businesses of their own. Your guidance, questions and encouragement can make a difference. Contact our team to learn how to get involved – https://jasouthflorida.org/volunteer

Togeher, lets help young people bring the ideas that move us forward to life.

This month, I decided to share a personal message and shine a light on a pool of talent we may be overlooking in our workforce: young adults with disabilities.

October is Down Syndrome Awareness Month and National Disability Employment Awareness Month. As the mom of a young adult with Down syndrome, this is personal. It’s also a big part of why I am so passionate about Junior Achievement.

Some of you have heard my story, but it bears repeating.

When my son Patrick was born, I asked myself, “What can I do to help him become the most productive, independent, responsible adult he can be?”

I knew that meant giving him opportunities to learn, grow, explore and discover his abilities. It meant giving him the experiences, resources and supports he would need to thrive and succeed.

Two years later, my daughter Samantha was born. I realized I wanted exactly the same things for her. The preparation and support might look different, but the goal was the same – a life with purpose, choices and economic independence. For both my children it was about building the skills, confidence and connections to move forward in life.

From my children to thousands of young people

Today, through JA, I get to help create those opportunities for tens of thousands of young people.

Each comes to us with different strengths, experiences, backgrounds and circumstances. Some are navigating foster care or have been involved with the juvenile justice system. Some have disabilities, and some just need additional support or a different approach to learning.

Everyone deserves the chance to discover what they can do.

Talent we may be missing

When we talk about building our workforce, young adults with disabilities need to be part of that conversation.

Are we seeing what someone can contribute or making assumptions before we’ve had the chance to find out?

A disability doesn’t tell us someone’s interests, work ethic or potential. We discover those by getting to know the person and giving them opportunities to demonstrate their skills.

That means matching people with meaningful work, understanding their support needs and providing clear expectations and training.

We cannot prepare young people for work and then leave them without a chance to work.

At JA, we walk the walk

Through our partnership with Broward College, JA hires interns with disabilities, giving young adults opportunities to gain experience and contribute to our organization.

As an employer, and as an organization that’s core focus is workforce development, we have a responsibility to put our beliefs into practice through meaningful assignments, guidance and opportunities to grow.

Be the employer who sees the potential

Look at the work your business needs done. Could an internship or job be a good fit for a young adult with a disability?

Offer an internship. Host a workplace visit. Give someone the chance to show you what they can do. Connect with JA to explore how you can get involved.

As Patrick’s mom, I know how much it matters when someone sees your child’s abilities. As JA’s CEO, I want more young people and employers to experience what can happen when that potential gets a chance.

Our future workforce should include young people with disabilities. Let’s make sure our opportunities do, too.

Laurie Sallarulo
President & CEO, Junior Achievement of South Florida