NEW YORK, Nov. 23 — Virtual Enterprises International (VEI) announced today that students from Loretto High School, Collierville High School and Lawrence County High School have qualified to compete in VE’s Tennessee State Business Plan Competition, scheduled for December 8 in Murfreesboro.
In September 2021, students of the VE program throughout the country were charged with creating a virtual business and running it through the school year from their classrooms. Earlier this month, schools in western Tennessee were invited to present their companies’ business plan to a team of judges at VE’s Western Tennessee Business Plan Competition. The students were critiqued on their oral presentation, their executive summary and a Q&A Session with the judges. The businesses that qualified for the state competition are as follows:
Loretto High School: The Animal Kingdom
Collierville High School: Sol Tech
Lawrence County High School: Nature Nooks
VE hosted two additional regional Business Plan Competitions – one for schools in Central Tennessee and the other for those in Eastern Tennessee. Finalists from these competitions are Bearden High School, Knoxville, TN; Oakland High School, Murfreesboro, TN; and Blackman High School, also of Murfreesboro. All qualifying finalists will now compete in the state competition, currently scheduled for December 8th at the Rutherford County Board of Education in Murfreesboro.
The winner of the state competition will become a finalist in the National Business Plan Competition in April 2022, where finalists nationwide will vie for the top honor. More than 300 schools annually compete in VE’s Business Plan Competitions.
The National Business Plan Competition is one part of the year-long VE program which annually provides more than 20,000 students with the opportunity to create and run virtual business ventures in 430 schools across the country. Through the program, students create a business together, role-play corporate positions, conduct transactions with other simulated businesses, attend trade shows and run the business as if it were real.
ABOUT VIRTUAL ENTERPRISES INTERNATIONAL
Virtual Enterprises International (VE) is a national nonprofit that transforms students through authentic business experiences which prepare them for fulfilling, financially secure futures. Since Virtual Enterprises’ (VE) inception in 1996, it has served over 200,000 high school students, including many from economically disadvantaged communities. In 2015, VE introduced the VE-JV Career Academy, a similar two-year program that enables 7th and 8th grade students to develop technology and entrepreneurial skills by starting and managing business ventures. Roughly 90% of VE students interact with business professionals who mentor them on a regular basis and 87% identify a career path of interest due to their involvement in the VE program.
We currently support 16,500 students across the U.S. each year and are part of a global network spanning 40 countries and over 7,000 student-run businesses. Learn more about VE on our website, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn pages.
CONTACT:
Rossana Weitekamp
PR for VE
917-363-2510