History
Junior Achievement of Bismarck-Mandan began in 1991 with 6 classrooms. Ed Schafer was one of the business volunteers along with Dave Pearce, George Keiser, Mike Fladeland, Steve Herman and Ron Hodge.
In the 2008-2009 school year, JA had grown to 149 classrooms in the Bismarck-Mandan community. Our program reached over 3,400 students. This year brought a community-wide push to get financial literacy programs to every 9th grade classroom. This program, Junior Achievement Presents: The NEFE High School Financial Planning Program, sponsored by Capital Credit Union was rolled out to each public school in Bismarck-Mandan with great success.
The local JA office is a satellite operation of Junior Achievement of the Upper Midwest.Established in 1949, the Minneapolis and St. Paul chapters of Junior Achievement merged in 1982 to create Junior Achievement of the Upper Midwest, Inc. (JAUM). JAUM has broadened its reach and now serves greater Minnesota, North Dakota and western Wisconsin. JAUM headquarters and its capstone facility are located in Maplewood, MN.
Junior Achievement programs are taught in more than 650 schools and throughout the Upper Midwest. Last year alone more than 109,000 students had a JA program in their classroom. JAUM strives to provide innovative, fundamental learning opportunities preparing all students grades K-12, for a lifetime of success.
Each year more than 140 community volunteers enter schools to teach the many Junior Achievement programs. Through age-appropriate curricula, Junior Achievement programs begin in kindergarten, teaching children how they can impact the world around them as individuals, workers and consumers. Junior Achievement programs continue through the middle and high school grades, preparing students for their future and how to succeed in the global economy.