Junior Achievement Looking for Volunteers to Teach in Villages

Jay Barrett/KMXT
Junior Achievement, an organization that teaches workplace readiness, entrepreneurship and financial literacy has scheduled six one-day lessons in village schools on Kodiak Island, but they’re looking for volunteers to help out.
“It can be anyone. You have to love kids of course,” said Amarin Ellis is the Community Program Manager for J-A of Alaska in Anchorage. “So you’d go into the classroom – you don’t need to be a teacher or a professional. We’re just looking for businesspeople in the community that can go and share and relate their work experience to the program.”
Even though real J-A experience is necessary, Ellis says volunteers will be prepped:
“I’m in Anchorage, but I do provide an over-the-phone training and we have some videos online that will help also. But we provide all the program materials (and) this year we’re providing flights as well through a few grants that we were able to get,” she said. “So everything is paid for and provided. Just go out for the day and then go back to Kodiak.”
Ellis says the program helps prepare young people for the real world by showing them how to generate wealth and effectively manage it, and how to create jobs in their communities.
She said students put the lessons into action through the day-long courses.
“We really focus on empowering students to own their economic success and each of our programs aligns with curriculum for each grade level in order to provide students with that information.”
The one-day courses are on Sept. 23rd through 26th and October 3rd in the various communities. Ellis says Junior Achievement is looking for three volunteers for the workshops in Akhiok and Old Harbor, two in Chiniak, Karluk and Port Lions and one in Ouzinkie.
You can reach Amarin Ellis at 907-344-0101 ext. 24 or aellis@ja-alaska.org.