Ten Long Island Teams Are Finalists In Virtual Enterprises’ National Business Plan Competition

Students will compete for the top award in April

Virtual Enterprises (VE) announced that the following Long Island schools are now finalists in VE’s National Business Plan Competition (NBPC) happening April 17 to 19 during VE’s annual Youth Business Summit at the Jacob Javits Center in Manhattan. Students hail from multiple schools across Long Island, including Syosset and Jericho High School.

Students from Syosset High School created a line of bracelets made with plastic from the ocean called Drip. Students from Syosset High School also created a gummy bear called Thrive Healthy Living that helps physical and mental health. There were students who also competed with their business called Lunch BX, which offers alternative, more inclusive lunch to fellow students. Students from Jericho High School designed a sustainable clothing line called Elyts.

More than 2,400 students from 80 Long Island schools attended VE’s Long Island Regional Conference and Exhibition held at LIU Post from January 10 to 11. During that time, dozens of students presented business plans to a panel of judges during the first round of the business plan competition. Forty student businesses were chosen to advance to the competition’s second round, yielding 10 Long Island’s finalists.

During the Long Island Regional Conference and Exhibition, nearly 100 simulated businesses created and run by Long Island students participated in a live, interactive trade show and competed for best business plan, best sales pitch, best exhibit booth, and more. The annual event draws Long Island students who run simulated businesses with their classmates involved in the VE program as well as around 100 corporate volunteers from regional businesses, colleges and industry.

The VE program solves one of the biggest challenges facing education and the economy today – providing students with the best career and college-readiness experiences possible. At a time when only 43 percent of employers surveyed in the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE) Job Outlook Study feel students are prepared with the professionalism and work ethic needed for careers, VE’s apprenticeship model helps students identify a career path, develop 21st-century business and management skills and help shape their college journey. When compared to other high school students throughout the U.S., VE students reported a higher likelihood of going to college, feeling better prepared for it, and identified future career interests.

About Virtual Enterprises International

Virtual Enterprises International (VEI) is an educational nonprofit that provides a solution for schools to offer all students meaningful skills-based career experiences. Through our hands-on, taskbased curricula, aligned to the VE Career Readiness Framework, students test drive potential careers and develop in-demand skills and competencies that post-secondary institutions and employers are seeking. By managing the day-to-day operations of a company, students not only develop business skills and an entrepreneurial mindset, they also identify career pathways that align with their interests, talents, and aspirations.

Since its inception in 1996, VEI has served over 200,000 high school students, including many from under-resourced communities. In 2015, VEI introduced the VE-JV Career Academy, a similar two-year program that enables middle school students to develop technology and entrepreneurial skills by starting and managing business ventures. Roughly 90 percent of VE students interact with business professionals who mentor them on a regular basis and 87 percent identify a career path of interest due to their involvement in the VE program. We annually support 20,000+ students across the U.S. and are part of a global network spanning 40+ countries and 7,000+ student-run businesses.