Winter 2007 Newsletter

In This Edition:

Thomas Friedman to Speak at BestPrep's Educational Forum
"Birdies for BestPrep" Celebrates 10 Years of Fundraising and Fun
Choosing a Mentor, How MBV Has Impacted My Life
eMentors Celebrates Fifth Year
The Stock Market Game Concludes Fall Session, Spring Registration Begins
Register for BestPrep's Technology Integration Workshop
Upcoming BestPrep Volunteer Opportunities
ShareGift; Buy a meaningful gift & support BestPrep!

Thomas Friedman to Speak at BestPrep's Educational Forum

BestPrep is thrilled to announce that Thomas Friedman, world renowned author and journalist, will be the keynote speaker at BestPrep’s Educational Forum on Friday, May 9, 2008.

Few individuals have had a greater impact on the education, economic and political scene than Mr. Friedman. He is the winner of three Pulitzer Prizes for his work as a New York Times foreign affairs columnist and was named one of America’s Best Leaders by U.S. News & World Report. The World Is Flat is Mr. Friedman's account of the great changes taking place in our time, and is an essential update on globalization -- its opportunities for individual empowerment, its achievements at lifting millions out of poverty, and its drawbacks, whether environmental, social or political.

BestPrep’s Educational Forum will be presented by Gold Sponsors Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, Thrivent Financial for Lutherans and Thomson West. The event will also be held in partnership with the Minnesota High Tech Association, The Minneapolis/St. Paul Business Journal and WCCO Radio. The special guest emcee for the day will be Don Shelby of WCCO TV/Radio.

Living in a Changing Flat World Essay Competition…In conjunction with the Educational Forum, BestPrep will hold an essay competition for Minnesota high school students. The top 25 students and their respective teachers will be invited to the Educational Forum as well as a meet and greet with Mr. Friedman. Details regarding the essay competition will be mailed to BestPrep educators as well as published on the BestPrep website in the near future.

Sponsorships, tables of ten and individual seats are still available. We anticipate that the event will sell out – so make your reservations today! More information on the event, prices and registration can be found at www.bestprep.org. Questions? Contact Elizabeth Johnson at ejohnson@bestprep.org or 763-398-0090 ext.225.

We hope you will join us for what promises to be a unique and educational experience!

"Birdies for BestPrep" Celebrates 10 Years of Fundraising and Fun

On Saturday, January 26, 2008 from 6:30-10:00pm BestPrep will be holding its 10th annual “Birdies for BestPrep” special event at the McNamara Alumni Center on the University of Minnesota campus. “Birdies” has become a critical fundraising event for BestPrep, raising more than $485,000 for BestPrep’s programs throughout the past nine years. Every dollar raised from the event is directly allocated to BestPrep’s business and financial literacy education programs, with special emphasis on students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

New this year – BestPrep Idol! Students that have participated in BestPrep’s programs will entertain the audience with their singing talent. These students will compete for a $1,000 savings bond.

Back once again will be everyone’s favorites: professionally designed miniature golf holes, a raffle for a $2,000 Best Buy shopping spree and $1,000 Target shopping spree, caricature artists, golf simulator, fabulous food catered by D’Amico and our incredible 250-item silent auction with items from around the world (see items at http://bestprep.org/auction.html).

Attendees, representing more than 400 BestPrep volunteers, educators and donors, will be in attendance.

We hope you will join us on January 26th to support BestPrep’s programs and to have a fun-filled evening. The cost to attend the event is $75 per ticket, which includes entertainment, activities and fabulous food! Tickets can also be purchased in discounted packages of 10 for $600 – a $150 savings! We are once again offering a special educator discounted rate of $50 per ticket.

There are sponsorships still available. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor, please contact Elizabeth Johnson. Or for additional information on this event, contact Elizabeth at ejohnson@bestprep.org or 763-398-0090 ext.225.

Choosing a Mentor, How MBV Has Impacted My Life-submitted by Jay Ingber, senior at Robbinsdale Armstrong High School

My name is Jay Ingber, and this past summer I attended Minnesota Business Venture through BestPrep. This amazing opportunity enabled me to meet many remarkable business professionals from throughout the Twin Cities.

I am currently enrolled in a program offered by Intermediate District 287 called Honors Mentor Connection. Honors Mentor Connection allows high school students to experience a different way of learning outside of the classroom, through extensive studies and research in a particular field they are interested in. One of the key requirements of the program is for students to identify and recruit a mentor by holding informational interviews with experts within their field of interest.

I began my interviewing process by interviewing a guest speaker I had met while attending MBV – Michael Keller, from International Dairy Queen. I sent Mr. Keller an email hoping to set up an interview. Three weeks later, I held my first ever informational interview. This was not your typical informational interview. It was an informational interview with the Chief Marketing Officer of IDQ. When I sat down in Mr. Keller’s office, it was as if we had known each other for many years. Conversation was easy. Mr. Keller responded to all of my questions with a great deal of willingness and enthusiasm to share with me his lifelong experiences. I was thrilled with how well the interview went! After having such a positive experience, I was eager to find my next interviewee.

Next on my list to interview was Doug Selle, who also spoke at MBV. Mr. Selle, a Business Development Lead for Best Buy, promptly responded to my request for a meeting. After numerous email and phone conversations, Doug and I were able to meet at the Best Buy Corporate Campus just a few weeks later. Doug generously spent five hours of his time with me that day, introducing me to many of his colleagues and allowing me to job shadow him, as well as giving me a tour of the entire facility and his personal work environment.

MBV was a remarkable experience for me, serving as a stepping stone to my future in becoming a professional in the business world. I cannot thank Michael Keller and Doug Selle enough for taking the time to contribute to my outstanding Mentor Connection experience.

eMentors Celebrates Fifth Year

When any program or event marks its fifth year, it’s time to take a moment to reflect on its successes. Let us take this occasion to highlight a few successes of the eMentor’s program:

• Thomson West & Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, two companies that were part of the original pilot project in the spring of 2004, continue to shine as top supporters. This year Thomson will engage employees as volunteer mentors for both Eastview High School and Rosemount High School; and Thrivent Financial will provide mentors for Andover High School.
• Guiding Question prompts have been created to address students’ pressing questions about entering the workforce and starting their career. There are more than ten prompts available when emailing with the workplace skills series, and a variety of questions to choose from in both the financial literacy and science series.
• eMentors generates the most volunteers of any of BestPrep’s programs. In the 2006-2007 school year, more than 900 volunteers reached out to nearly 1,100 students creating one-on-one matches.
• Plans are underway for at least 20 companies to support the initiative this school year. Some of the strongest matches are made when one company supports a whole class of students by providing an equal number of mentors.
  

More opportunities exist for additional companies and schools to become involved. Please contact Bonnie Vagasky at bvagasky@bestprep.org or 763-398-0090 ext.227 for information.

The Stock Market Game Concludes Fall Session, Spring Registration Begins

The Stock Market Game™ (SMG) will conclude its fall session on December 14, with over 5,000 students participating from Minnesota this year. An awards ceremony will be held in January for the winning teams at the Carlson School of Management on the University of Minnesota campus. The top high school team wins an all-expense paid trip to Chicago where students will tour the financial district and see some of Chicago’s top attractions.

Registration is now open for the spring session of The Stock Market Game. The session will kick off on January 22 and run through April 25 (open entry/exit dates). First time teachers may participate for free! Current teachers can recruit another teacher and receive 5 free teams for themselves.

To get your school involved, or if you have any questions regarding The SMG, please contact Ryan Tews at 763-398-0090 ext.233 or at rtews@bestprep.org.

Register for BestPrep's Technology Integration Workshop

Want to change or spice up your classroom lessons with technology? Want to learn how to use new technology tools? Need continuing education credits?

For four days every summer, BestPrep holds a Technology Integration Workshop for teachers. During this Workshop, teachers modify an existing lesson plan to include technology content. Participants expand their technology skills and learn the Understanding by Design integration method to bring classroom technology into their every day lessons. In addition, participants are matched with a Business Partner volunteer for a job shadow experience, where they’ll learn workplace and technology skills students need to know when entering the workforce.

Teachers - Reserve July 28-31, 2008 on your calendar to attend this staff development opportunity. Previous participants’ completed lessons can be viewed online at www.bestprep.org/tccell/tccell.htm.

Upcoming BestPrep Volunteer Opportunities

In the coming months, several volunteer opportunities will be available to participate in.

Classroom Plus: BestPrep’s flagship program has reached over 800,000 students since its beginning in 1976 by bringing volunteer speakers and presenters into classrooms in order to supplement classroom theory with real-life examples and role models.

• Volunteers complete an on-line form at www.bestprep.org/CP/cpvolunteers.html
• Volunteers choose their presentation topic, level of commitment and location of interest
• Classroom Plus staff will contact volunteers when their topic is requested by a teacher
  

If interested, please contact Kristin Dieng at 763-398-0090 ext.230 or kdieng@bestprep.org.

eMentors: We are always looking for dedicated business professionals who are willing to be connected with a student via email in order to link the student’s education to the world of work.

• Volunteers are required to send and receive one email a week for seven weeks with one face-to-face meeting at the end
• Volunteers provide guidance on how to successfully achieve academic and career goals

If interested, please contact Bonnie Vagasky at 763-398-0090 ext.227 or bvagasky@bestprep.org.

ShareGift; Buy a meaningful gift & support BestPrep!

As we’re nearing the holidays, we’d like to alert you to a unique program, sponsored by the Pohlad Family Foundation, called Twice the Gift. Twice the Gift offers a unique option for holiday gift givers.

WHAT: Twice the Gift is a unique downtown Minneapolis shop that showcases products and services provided by Twin Cities' nonprofit organizations. Shoppers can select a meaningful gift for loved ones and/or business associates that will benefit others in the community. Selected nonprofits sell specialty gifts at the shop, and BestPrep has been selected to participate in the program this year. "ShareGifts" will be available exclusively at Twice the Gift this year. A ShareGift honors the recipient organization by supporting specific services or items needed by Twin Cities' nonprofits. BestPrep’s ShareGift: sponsor a team of five students from an underfunded school to participate in The Stock Market game for $60.00 or sponsor one student attending Minnesota Business Venture camp for one week for $125.00.

WHEN: Store hours: 10:00am-7:00pm Mon-Fri.; 10:00am-6:00pm Sat.; 12:00pm-5:00pm Sun.
Twice the Gift will be open November 19, 2007 through January 1, 2008

WHERE: Gaviidae II, Second Floor/Skyway Level, 555 Nicollet Mall #295, Minneapolis, MN 55402