Charleston YEScarolina student & teacher recognized at international showcase for entrepreneurship
April 5, 2017
Wando High School Student and North Charleston High School Teacher Receive Top Honors from National Organization for Embracing Entrepreneurship
When a school project tasked local 17-year old Lucas Greenway to develop his childhood passion for woodworking with this father into an actionable business idea, he never expected it to change his future, much less earn him an all expenses paid trip to New York City. But that’s exactly where Greenway’s participation in YEScarolina’s entrepreneurship program at Wando High School took him. With his attendance, along with YEScarolina entrepreneurship teacher Carolyn Southall’s, who has been teaching the program at North Charleston High School for the past two years, Charleston was well represented at the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) Global Showcase in New York City. Both Greenway and Southall were lauded for top honors.
While receiving recognition as a Global Young Entrepreneur of the Year was “life changing”, Greenway also spoke highly of the networking opportunities with fellow honorees and attendees. “I made real friends, where we all instantly got along, because of our similar entrepreneurial mindset”, he said. The “exposure to people that [he] seldom get[s] the chance to meet” has reinvigorated his enthusiasm for growing his local business, Charleston Cutlery.
As a committed educator who goes above and beyond to connect local businesspeople with her middle schoolers, Southall earned her right to be “proud and honored” long before being recognized as a “Global Enterprising Educator of the Year”. She found it “empowering” to interact with other students and educators from all over the globe at the event. This empowerment is something she continues to instill within her own North Charleston High School students, by teaching them the entrepreneurial skills that can enable them to change their futures for the better.
Each year, NFTE hosts this event to recognize young people who demonstrate a dedication to and enthusiasm for the entrepreneurial pursuits they are challenged with through its curriculum, locally facilitated by YEScarolina’s commitment to educating teachers here in South Carolina. This year’s NFTE Global Showcase, presented by Mastercard, was in celebration of the organization’s 30th anniversary. Over 400 people were in attendance. Along with YEScarolina’s Greenway and Southall were also Forbes #30for30 entrepreneurs, Mastercard’s Chief Franchise Officer, Timothy Murphy, and Forbes Editor Caroline Howard, who moderated the event. The event took place at Cipriani 25 Broadway in New York City on March 23, 2017.
ABOUT YEScarolina
Youth Entrepreneurship South Carolina, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, is the leading organization in South Carolina dedicated to teaching youth the principles of entrepreneurship and free enterprise. Recognizing that South Carolina’s future is dependent upon a vibrant entrepreneurial economy, YEScarolina is preparing today’s youth to be tomorrow’s business owners and business leaders. YEScarolina has helped thousands of young people from communities statewide build business skills and fuel their entrepreneurial spirit. To date, YEScarolina has trained and certified over 925 South Carolina teachers on the subject of entrepreneurship. These educators in turn have touched and inspired tens of thousands of young South Carolinians with a thirst for entrepreneurship. YEScarolina offers entrepreneurship training to public school teachers statewide without charge. YEScarolina is a program partner of the Network For Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE).
For more information or to contribute to YEScarolina, please visit yescarolina.com, Like YEScarolina on Facebook at facebook.com/yescarolina and follow @YEScarolina on Instagram or Twitter
