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Here at BizWorld.org we wholeheartedly embrace the entrepreneurial mindset. We truly believe in ongoing learning, reflecting, and improving. And we’re constantly asking ourselves, how we can do better. How can we better equip our students for successful futures? How can we better support our dedicated educators in this mission? And how can we better reach the students that need us the most? We found our answers within our own community of passionate teachers, district leaders, budding entrepreneurs, volunteers, and supporters. So this past year, we leveraged the diverse ideas and wonderful resources and embarked on our mission to create the next generation of BizWorld: BizWorldPRO. Here’s how we did it. Over years of working with classrooms across the country and globally with our international partners, we have observed innovative BizWorld teaching strategies, modifications, and add-ons. We compiled the best teacher practices from around the globe to enhance our core entrepreneurship curriculum including: We interviewed successful entrepreneurs so that we could bring you the most up-to-date, expert business and entrepreneurship content for empowering students with the knowledge and skills to succeed. Finally, we developed the new version of the curriculum using 21st century tools. Our BizWorldPRO curriculum is accessible through our blended learning platform. You can find lesson plans, teaching resources, and student assessments in one, easy-to-access digital toolkit. PLUS the tool is built to integrate technology for student use in the right places, to maximize their learning experience. We’re counting on YOU – each and every educator in our BizWorld community – to check out BizWorldPRO and share your thoughts with us. We are committed to keep innovating for you and for your students!

BizWorld.org announced the winners of the Girlpreneur competition at WorldWideWomen’s Girls Festival on Saturday at The Palace of Fine Arts. The first-place winner, a girl-conceived business called Her Rah! 1st Bra won $1,000 to help finance her business. Founder McKenna (of Florida) confidently pitched her business to celebrity judges Leslie Blodgett of Bare Minerals, Sukhinder Singh Cassidy of Stubhub, Paola Santana of Social Glass and Kara Haspel Lind of Kara’s cupcakes. McKenna wowed the judges with her creative and passionate solution to something every girl experiences. The audience was able to participate and selected The People’s Choice winners Sage, Natalie and Diana of High School Connect located in Oakland, CA, who won $500 after delivering a compelling business pitch. All participants won BizWorld programs for their schools in order to inspire more young people with entrepreneurial programs. In addition, on behalf of StubHub, Sukhinder Singh Cassidy gifted each participant with tickets to a live experience of their choosing to reward them all for amazing pitches on stage. The Girlpreneur Competition is a contest designed to engage the spirit of entrepreneurship among young girls. “We aim to inspire all girls to act upon their ideas and dreams,” said Thais Rezende, CEO of BizWorld.org. “By equipping them with entrepreneurship education, we can help them to lead and succeed. They give all of us the confidence to dream big; we’re proud of them.” The 5 finalists’ companies were Delarai of Chef Koochooloo; Bella of TLeggings.com; McKenna of Her Rah! 1st Bra; Natalie, Diana, and Sage of High School Connect; Mahek of Earth Beauty. It was such an amazing day celebrating all the Girlpreneurs!

Thank you to all of our supporters who made BizWorld’s inaugural Demo Day event a smashing success! It was a thrilling experience to showcase the inspiring business plans of our young entrepreneurs who were mentored through their participation in the YES! Program. This celebratory event signified the culmination of our students’ YES! entrepreneurial journey: a summer highlighted by immersive workshop experiences, webinars and transformative 1:1 virtual mentorship sessions, all in preparation for the opportunity to pitch their business ideas to a panel of investors for seed funding. We are so proud of our Demo Day Finalists, who were awarded funding based on their business’ viability: John Ciocca, Founder of youBelong Mathew Galvez, Founder of LOTTAWorldwide James Green, Founder of FixMyKix It is with tremendous gratitude that we thank our community members and sponsors who have invested their time, resources and expertise in bringing the YES! Program to fruition. Together, we created a robust entrepreneurial ecosystem, rich in expert mentorship and supported by a community of sponsors who believed in our mission to provide an accessible, inclusive and equitable pathway to entrepreneurship from early education to young adulthood. BizWorld’s 2020 future vision will continue to invest in the forward momentum and expansion of the YES! Program – It is our desire to grow our network of impact across the globe and support the next generation of business leaders and innovators, propelling them towards success! Take action today and become part of this movement by signing up to become a mentor and invest in the future of our community today!

Thank you to the Edison Township Public School District for sending us this great video! It’s so wonderful to see the teachers and students so engaged in the BizWorld Impact Challenge. The children learn to run their own businesses, inspiring them to become the architects of their futures which gives them the confidence to transform their worlds! Watch the Video Here

BizWorld.org Launches YES! (Young Entrepreneur Success) Program To Empower Teen Entrepreneurs to Launch Real-Life Businesses Oakland, CA – May 15, 2019 — BizWorld.org, a global non-profit providing hands-on and engaging entrepreneurship education programs for elementary and middle school children, launched the innovative YES! Program to create a unique and collaborative eco-system of youth businesses. The Golden State Warriors and Attles Center For Excellence are proudly co-sponsoring the YES! Program to support BizWorld in leading the way to entrepreneurship for today’s youth. The YES! Program empowers the next generation of aspiring teen entrepreneurs as they explore, test and launch their real-life businesses. Through the 3-phase program, students will create a business plan, participate in an accelerator program, and compete for $30,000 in start-up funding. The program culminates in a demo day where teams of young entrepreneurs will showcase their businesses to a panel of venture capitalists, and compete for $30,000 in funding. “We are thrilled to launch the Yes! Program to help lead the pathway to entrepreneurship by supporting the vision and passion of our aspiring teens and young adults”, said Thais Rezende, CEO of BizWorld.org. “ We want to equip our young entrepreneurs with practical business knowledge, mentorship and access to capital to help make their dream a reality. We are very proud of them.” Online registration for the Yes! Program opens up on May 20th where young entrepreneurs from across the country have access to a free, 6-week online educational experience to help them create a business plan. After the 6-week program, these young entrepreneurs will submit applications to be considered for the Yes! Accelerator Program. The Accelerator program provides them with the opportunity to engage in one-on-one mentorship sessions with top Silicon Valley business leaders and participate in live workshops hosted by many well-known companies in the Bay Area. On July 10th, 20 semi-finalists will be selected for the YES! Accelerator Program so that 5 finalists may compete for up to $30,000 in start-up funding. The program ends on September 12th. “We are proud to support BizWorld and the extraordinary work they do to empower our future leaders,” said Warriors Community Foundation Program Manager, Evan Schwartz. “By engaging children in entrepreneurship education and teaching them how to run a business, they are inspiring under-served students to become creative, critical thinkers with the confidence to tackle real-world problems. BizWorld is integral to allowing Bay Area youth to achieve their highest potential, and for that we are thrilled to call them our partners.” Al Attles III, Founder of the Attles Center For Excellence said, “ACE is very excited to be partnering with BizWorld to launch the YES! Program. We believe all youth deserve the tools and support to explore their creativity, and our hope is that the YES! Program gives birth to a whole new generation of entrepreneurs.” More information on Yes! and other BizWorld Programs can be found at www.bizworld.org/Yes. About BizWorld BizWorld.org is a global non-profit organization based in Oakland, CA, whose mission is to empower children to become 21st century thinkers by awakening their entrepreneurial spirit, inspiring them to become the architects of their futures, and giving them the confidence to transform their communities. Founded 20 years ago by Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tim Draper, BizWorld.org programs teach students real-world 21st century skills such as financial management, collaboration, negotiation and leadership that encourage them to become the financially responsible leaders and entrepreneurs of tomorrow. BizWorld.org provides three, project-based programs – BizWorld®, BizMovie® and BizWiz™. BizWorld.org has reached nearly 750,000 students in more than 100 countries. For more information, please visit www.bizworld.org or call toll-free 1-888-4-BizKid. For more information, please visit Bizworld.org. Contact: Shefali Billon at 415-706-4397.

By Harry Gould, VP WorldWide Alliances and Channels, SailPoint and BizWorld Board MemberApril 30, 2019 We’re thrilled to be charity partners with the RBC GranFondo Silicon Valley ride for a second year happening on June 22, 2019. We interviewed our long-standing board member, Harry Gould, on his experience on this wonderful ride in California. 1) Tell us about your experience on the RBC GranFondo Silicon Valley ride last year. I had an amazing opportunity to help create and participate in the first inaugural GranFondo Silicon Valley bike ride last year sponsored by RBC/City National Bank. Here’s how the story comes together: I had met Neil McKinnon, Chief Enthusiast of the GranFondo a couple of years ago when I cycled the GranFondo in Whistler, British Columbia. I was immediately drawn to him and the ride in Silicon Valley in 2018. Being a board member of BizWorld, I saw an opportunity to introduce Neil to Thais Rezende, CEO of BizWorld, in an effort to help raise funds for BizWorld while offering donors an opportunity to give back and participate in this beautiful ride. The 60-mile ride went from East Palo Alto to the Pacific Ocean and featured scenic and breathtaking views of the Bay Area. There were many hydration and rest stations as well as healthy nourishment along the way. The ride became especially challenging because it was one of the hottest days in the Bay area as the bikers were headed back over Tunitas Creek, a steep 6.6 mile climb in San Mateo county. I would definitely do this ride again! RBC was a terrific and generous sponsor of the GranFondo, BizWorld and the other charity partners. It was a great way to bring riders, partners and volunteers from all over the Bay Area together to celebrate leadership and community and have fun, while taking advantage of the beauty of the Bay Area. 2) Why it is important for you to support BizWorld during this ride? I’ve been supporting Bizworld for over a decade now and am currently on the Board of Directors for the organization. I believe strongly in BizWorld because it teaches kids to become entrepreneurs and to communicate in a team environment. Children ignite their creativity and understanding on what they want to do as they grow and what it takes to create a successful business. I taught BizWorld in all three of my children’s 4th and 5th grade classes, and also to at-risk kids in their schools. All of the children learned the fundamentals of what it takes to run a business and how to do things in a business setting. I haven’t seen a more engaging program. I liked BizWorld so much I decided to join the Board many years ago. 3) Why would others be interested to support Bizworld and the other charity partner on this ride? There are not many events that combine healthy inspiration and good giving, and encourage taking advantage of the beautiful Bay Area which we are blessed to live in. The RBC GranFondo brings the community together in a fun and impactful way so that we all have a better understanding of people and important causes. Events like the GranFondo help us all to become more tolerant and supportive of other folks and organizations. The RBC GranFondo offer an amazing ride, inspiration and giving all in one place.

We are thrilled to announce that our annual Impact Challenge will take place on March 18th until June 7th, 2019. Teachers, it’s a wonderful opportunity to challenge classrooms to run successful businesses to turn $100 into $500 of profit to donate to meaningful social causes while empowering other classrooms to do the same. Help encourage your students to nurture their entrepreneurial spirit and become socially conscious citizens! Here is how it works: We look forward to having you, our BizWorld family of educational leaders and students, participate in this impactful challenge!

By Sherri Wright, Teacher, Hidden Hills Elementary We are so grateful for everything the BizWorld staff did for us, and that you allowed us to participate this year in the Education Riskmaster Luncheon competition. I’ve encouraged the students to write a book about their experience that they can share with others to inspire them and teach them a little about what it takes to start a business. We’re also going to order a few more products from you so that we can do two sessions of BizClub after the first of the year. The students who participated last year are excited to lead it. I think the letters from our students speak for themselves about the impact this experience had on them. I’m sure they’ll keep in touch. Please thank the anonymous donor who so generously gave each of the other schools $1000. That was such a wonderful thing to do. I was sitting there wishing I could afford to do something like that for the other schools too. Once again, we are grateful to you and your team. I personally have loved the opportunities you have given me. It’s one of those things that words or gifts don’t quite express the deep appreciation. When I see young people empowered to learn in real world ways through a simulated experience, I know their learning won’t just last for a day or a month – but it will last a lifetime. You’ve had a great impact on the over 200 students that I’ve personally worked with using your model, and I wish you continued success.

By Grazia Bennett, Bizworld Advisory Board Member Name: Marco PalladinoAge: 29Favorite Food: PastaFavorite Video Game: CivilizationFavorite Toy: Soccer ball Bizworld.org encourages kids to be creative thinkers, to become problem solvers, to make decisions and take risks. Marco Palladino, the co-founder of Kong Inc. has mastered all this and more. Kong Inc. is an open source API technology focusing on the protection, safety and authentication of data. Currently the top global 5,000 companies and some governments use Kong’s products. I recently had the opportunity to meet Marco and his enthusiasm and energy are contagious. How old were you when you first thought you wanted to create something? Since I was a child the only thing I was interested in doing with my toys was to take them apart. I was curious to learn how their mechanisms worked. I kept a hidden box for all the broken pieces of toys so that my mother would not find them. Were you a good student? I was a terrible student, although I had an immense passion to learn as much as I could once something attracted my interest. I would completely forget to do homework if I became interested in, for example, learning more about a compass – reading about the topic for hours. At 12 years old I taught myself coding. I did not have money to buy software, but I could spend Friday evenings designing apps on sheets of paper. You are Italian. How much more difficult is it for a foreign entrepreneur to succeed in Silicon Valley? In 2009 I moved with my co-founders, Augusto Marietti and Michele Zonca, to Silicon Valley after being accepted into the TechCrunch50 pitch competition. When we arrived to the Bay Area we had enough money to last for one week. We replied to a blog post by the former Uber CEO Travis Kalanick who was just starting to work on his idea of ridesharing service. Travis was offering his couch to founders coming in from out of town for the competition. Our team was chosen with the teams of other two start-ups and we moved to Travis’ house. To raise funds for a start-up is truly a herculean task but we had tenfold more obstacles to overcome: we spoke broken English, we didn’t know the Silicon Valley ecosystem and we had only 3 months to do it in. At one of the evening events for entrepreneurs and investors that we attended daily to meet investors — and frankly for free food — we succeeded in getting funded. What is your best advice for the emerging and young Bizworld entrepreneurs? If you think you are doing the right thing, however hard it is, just do it. Things are not going to be easy and you know it, that’s what makes it even more exciting. As Winston Churchill said, “When you are going through hell, keep going.” By the way, I will attend the annual Bizworld’s Riskmaster Luncheon on December 13 and I will be happy to talk with any aspiring young entrepreneur about pursuing their dreams.

By John Lin, BizWorld Advisory Board Member For all you chocolate lovers out there, young and old, here’s a sweet story about pursuing your dreams. Since BizWorld helps kids discover and nurture their entrepreneurial spirit I thought I’d share a story about my friend Todd, a chocolate entrepreneur who got the entrepreneurial bug when he was a young boy. He and his business partners own a chocolate factory now, have been selling chocolate since 2010, and are about to expand. I asked Todd a few questions about his chocolate journey. So when you look back at your childhood what do you think influenced you and made you think you might have an interest in starting something? My parents were high school teachers but I think my father had always wanted to get into business, so our family always kind of thought in that mindset. I remember my brother was always starting businesses when we were young. We would collect stuff like golf balls that were lost on the course and then sell them to people, so definitely much of it came from my brother. Since you didn’t have a background in chocolate what gave you the confidence to go into the chocolate business? I’d say I had a background in chocolate eating! In fact, I was very good at that… but I didn’t have any formal training [in chocolate making]. We hadn’t intended to start a chocolate company. We were just making it in a garage for fun to see if we could do it and before we knew it, friends and family said they really liked our chocolate and then we started winning awards! Next thing you knew, people started trying to place wholesale orders while we were still in the garage. So at that time we realized there was quite a demand for what seemed like a new type of chocolate. Modern chocolate had become so divorced from the original agricultural ingredients that in some ways it benefited [us] to not have a formal education in chocolate so we could start from first principles like, “How did people used to make chocolate?” I would say our lack of expertise actually ended up being an advantage. What do you think is cool about BizWorld? I think it’s beneficial for kids to have actual business projects they can work on. They can practice working in teams, practice building stuff, practice actually getting stuff out to customers. All of these are really good experiences for eventually learning how to build and run a successful company. What would you tell your younger self? I think it comes down to if you are excited about something there will always be reasons why it may not work, but that shouldn’t stop you from going for it. I think you have to take problems one by one. So, if you’re passionate about something you should just go for it. Deal with what is in front of you and take it one day at a time. Put one foot in front of the other eventually you end up somewhere! Todd Masonis is co-founder of San Francisco’s popular Dandelion Chocolate, a bean to bar chocolate factory in the SF’s Mission District. Todd and his partners plan to open up additional locations and are launching their first book “Making Chocolate” this month.