SEELEY LAKE - The Seeley-Swan High School Entrepreneur Class has been talking about Market Day since the first day of school. Now their mini businesses are a reality and will make their debut during the second annual Blackhawk BIZ Market Day from 10 a.m. - 6 p.m., Saturday, Dec. 10, in the SSHS Cafeteria. The high school students are excited to offer their homemade goodies, hand-made crafts, jewelry and apparel, and unique art created from various mediums.
With the class size more than doubling from last year's inaugural Entrepreneur class, SSHS is leading the way for Missoula County Public Schools. Teacher Michele Holmes said they are the first school in the MCPS District to offer an entrepreneur class using Empowered, a curriculum sponsored by the Montana Chamber of Commerce.
Empowered provides a platform for hands-on, real-life business experience by taking students through the whole entrepreneurial process from brainstorming to starting a mini business in a semester.
"Nobody [in MCPS] is using the Empowered platform and curriculum, and I think it adds so much," Holmes said. "The activities are so hands-on, and it is just such a powerful way to learn."
Last year, Holmes selected the Empowered curriculum because it encourages teamwork, teaches students the different aspects of business and market economics through hands-on activities and exercises, and provides start-up funding for students to start a business. Every activity and lesson integrates Empowered's eight foundational principles: Responsibility, integrity, knowledge, freedom, passion, opportunity, sound judgment and win-win focus.
"We are not just making a buck but doing it the right
way," Holmes said. "We are trying to empower them to take these risks without the true risk of using your own money, while encouraging that creative thought of what goes into starting a business."
This summer Holmes attended training sponsored by the Montana Chamber with other teachers using the Empowered curriculum. The teachers toured various businesses in Livingston, Mont., and asked the owners what hard and soft skills they were looking for in employees.
"It was inspirational to me," Holmes said. "It was great for giving these kids ideas of what is happening or what could be a product that they make."
The Montana Chamber hosted a stakeholder meeting this fall as another opportunity for Holmes to gather input from local business owners and other community members. She compiled business ideas into a slideshow and presented them to her students to get them thinking about their own business venture. She said she really pushed the passion principle.
"I told them if their business is something that they are at least a little bit excited about, it will make this project much more fun to do," she said.
Holmes said the past two years it has been fun to watch students launch a business that uses a family recipe or utilizes skills they learned from relatives.
"Those are neat to me - to attach a school assignment that is also having kids reach out to their families," Holmes said. "The families and community have been so supportive."
Once students chose an idea for a business, they did market research, analyzed the cost of goods sold, looked at competitive pricing and learned how to market and brand their business. They compiled this information in a Business Model Canvas, a chart that graphically identified components of a business plan.
"It is meant to be really flexible so they can pivot on things that don't make sense," Holmes said.
Students pitched their mini businesses during a mock "Shark Tank" on Nov. 15 to four local business owners and entrepreneurs Vicki Voegelin, Patti Bartlett, Brandy Wolfe and Andi Bourne. The Sharks provided constructive feedback to each student.
The Sharks were excited to hear about the range of business ventures. They repeatedly praised the students' skills and talents and offered suggestions to help better promote their product, serve their customers and set pricing.
"The goal needs to be to have a profit," Holmes said, echoing the Sharks. "You don't work for free, and just breaking even does not warrant the effort."
With 16 students this year versus seven last year, Holmes said this has built a lot of energy for Market Day. Adding to the momentum this year, the Seeley Swan Booster Club is sponsoring a Best Customer Service Award and Best Marketing and Display Award. Secret Shoppers will evaluate the students during Market Day, and cash awards will be given.
"I just love seeing students shine in here," Holmes said. "This is another way for them to share their strengths and talents with the world."
Holmes is also excited to hear the interest and excitement for the students to continue offering their products after Market Day.
"I've seen it before where a high school student starts a photography business and it becomes their job through college," Holmes said. "It will be neat to see where that goes."
This year's student businesses include:
• CHICKEN BUILDER: All wood, handcrafted chicken feeder in the form of a picnic table. Customization available.
• CRAZY COOKIE: Homemade cookies with Twix, Snickers and more favorite chocolates. Made with local ingredients.
• CREATIVE CANVASES: Handmade, unique and eye-catching art on an 8x10 canvas. A new look on modern art – no two pieces are alike.
• DG LEATHER DESIGNS: Leather earrings (hypoallergenic) with genuine and manufactured leather in all different sizes, shapes and colors including Blackhawk black and gold.
• K & H CANDLES: Eight-ounce soy wax candles in a glass jar with wood wicks.
Offered in a variety of scents including leather, teakwood, lemon grass, vanilla, harvest spice and coconut.
• MONTANA KNITS: Hand-knitted headbands made with love and joy. Keeps you toasty with yarn that's soft and cozy.
• POP POP'S BISCOTTI: Cranberry/almond and vanilla flavor biscotti made from a traditional family recipe for that delicious homemade taste.
• RUMBLE CREEK WOODWORKING: Beautiful, unique, handcrafted juniper and pine cutting and charcuterie boards. Also epoxy Christmas ornaments to decorate for the Christmas season.
• STONEFLY EARRINGS: Handmade earrings (hypoallergenic) with a variety of hand-tied flies in a variety of sizes and colors. Every fly is based off of local fishing.
• SUGAR UP: Delicious homemade sugar cookies. Enjoy one now or stock up for the holidays.
The community is invited to attend the Blackhawk BIZ Market Day 2022 Saturday, Dec. 10, during the basketball games. Most of the booths will be cash-only although some may offer Venmo.
Reader Comments(0)