Youth entrepreneurship is hot!
A 1999 Kauffman Foundation survey reports nearly 7 out of 10 teens say they want to be self-employed in the future. Stories about young people who are starting their own businesses abound in the media.
Interested in hooking up with web-based resources for young entrepreneurs? The following sites offer good places to start. [If you want to order books on Youth Entrepreneurship from BarnesandNoble.com, click here.]
Ironically, there are not many places on the web where K-12 youth can go for guidance on becoming self-employed - at least places where the focus are on their particular needs or hurdles. There are a lot of organizations willing to help, but the help is through adults trained in particular methods.
Below eWeb provides links to those few sites ready to give youth help over the web, as well as the list of sites for organizations helping K-12 entrepreneurship through adults.
Sites For K-12 Entrepreneurs
http://www.goinsight.biz Insight: Created the first international social entrepreneur networking site; national/international business plan competitions; youth entrepreneur camps;
Independent Means: Is focused on helping under-20 women find an income of their own, but its relevant for everyone! What they have right now are several dozen short articles on all sorts of aspects of getting a business started or preparing yourself for eventual self-employment (not for women only!) - its called Independence Hall and is one of the most comprehensive collections for teens on the web. They will eventually have an online directory of teen businesses. Grade: A
Youngbiz.com: This is a website that got started focusing on youth investing in the stock market with a small section on youth entrepreneurship. Today it is one of the best sites on the web for youth entrepreneurship. Features include profiles of the top 100 companies by teens, a very complete set of online articles on teens (which they call 'treps) starting businesses. There is a members only section which requires a fee, but the free materials are plentiful and very good. Grade: A
Young-entrepreneur.org: This website focuses on young entrepreneurs in Orange County CA. The site does a nice job of mentioning some of the local K-12 entrepreneurs, but is pretty weak on original materials, mostly linking to very established (and not very youth oriented) sites like the SBA or the California SBDC. (Checked July 2003). Grade: C
www.BizEdventures.com: Biz Ed-Ventures is a youth entrepreneurship-training program that provides an intense one-week academy for youth ages 13-20. It is currently providing consulting services in the establishment of school-based businesses and youth incubator centers in partnership with the New Mexico Rural Revitalization Initiative of the New Mexico Public Education Department. It sets up business plan competitions, trade fairs and awards ceremonies for young entrepreneurs.
Youthventure.org: Is an organization that organizes teams of youth to develop businesses to help their communities. It is one of the few websites to actually have online material of use to prospective youth entrepreneurs, including advice on getting startedsuccess stories. Their Resources pages give examples of kid-started businesses organized by industry and geographic region. Grade: B+
http://ushyee.org U.S. Hispanic Youth Entrepreneur Education (USHYEE) Addresses high drop-out rate of Hispanics; introduces entrepreneurship as a career option; also covers scholarships, internships, and youth perspectives.