Columbian students to travel to Atlanta

TIFFIN — Six teams of teenage entrepreneurs from Tiffin-Columbian High School were selected to travel and compete in national business competitions in Atlanta, GA. Three teams will compete to become the next JA Titans of Business, whereas the other three teams will compete in the JA National Stock Market Challenge. Both competitions are to take place at Future Bound, a summit-style event that introduces teen entrepreneurs to real-world business skills. Junior Achievement (JA), the non-profit organization hosting the event, aims to inspire and prepare young people for success. "It all starts as a classroom experience," shared Stacey Geiger, a business teacher for Tiffin City Schools who will be joining students on their travels. Geiger continued, sharing that throughout the year, students study and participate in similar activities in the classroom using real world companies and stock market values. "They then are able to take concepts from the classroom and piece it together in a simulated environment, competing against students from throughout the country and against some of our own students as well," she added. This year is the first time students will be participating in the JA Titans of Business competition, something Geiger is very excited about. National JA Titan Competition Per a press release shared from JA, the National JA Titan Competition is an online simulation that allows students to step into the role of CEOs of virtual companies, making critical business decisions in a competitive and dynamic marketplace. This year, the Titan Competition will have students run a fictional cell phone company– where each student starts with the same model of cell phone and must decide what research and development will go into their individual products. The teams will go head-to-head with other top-performing teams for five distinct awards, including: the JA Titan National Champion – First, Second, and Third Place, the Pacific Life Responsible Innovation Award, and the Mercedes-Benz USA Best Marketing Award. "A lot of it's responding to what your competition does. If somebody drops their sales– the price for an item as an example, you have to decide are we gonna follow them down or hold our prices," added Geiger. The three teams participating in this competition and their team members from Tiffin-Columbian High School are as follows: • C-Suite Cyclone: Lily Allen, Aleyah Brown, Mackenzie Felske, and Sophia Schmidt.• Tornado Tycoons: Grant Blonde, Lane Gelinas, Chance Lucius, and Isaiah Tilse.• Tornado Takeover: Blake Melick, Jasmine Miller, Kaylee Stancil, and Wyatt Taylor. JA National Stock Market Challenge Additionally, three teams will be competing in the JA National Stock Market Challenge, an online simulation where students are given a hypothetical $1 million to invest in the stock market. The competition uses historical prices from real world companies, giving them fictional names for the duration of the competition. "Last year I had two students make it to Nationals, and so it's a big jump for me– going from, you know, like two students to 24," shared Geiger. This fast-paced competition requires students to track their investments and strategize over one hour, with each minute representing a new day. Students will have the opportunity to buy and sell stocks, analyze market trends, and make strategic decisions to maximize their returns as they compete to achieve the highest return on their investments. When asked what Geiger thinks will be the biggest challenge for students, she shared that the program implements what she would call pre-programmed distractors. "This prevents students from coming in with a pre-determined strategy in a way– you can't just get in there and say if I do this, I'm going to get this result," said Geiger. She continued, sharing as an example that when they practice in the classroom she can trigger a fictional recession– which changes the market, and causes students to respond accordingly. "What JA has told us– the teachers, is that there is a brand new distractor coming. So there's going to be a new challenge, and the students have no idea what it is," shared Geiger. These teams will vie for six different awards: JA Stock Market Challenge National Winner, Second, and Third Place, RSM Enduring Excellence Award, RSM Resilience Award, and Staples Sustainability Excellence Award. The three teams participating in this competition and their team members from Tiffin-Columbian High School are as follows: • Fiscal Cliff Hangers: Ryan Arnold, Dallas Glenn, Owen Hickey, and Lorelei Ludwig.• Hedge Fun: Liam Hartson, Olivia Musa, Parker Nye, and Weston Runion.• Loan & Behold: Oliver Armstrong, O'Dell Dickerson,Russell Fox, and Carter Riedel. In 2024, a team from Columbian High School took first place in the JA National Stock Market Challenge– the Asset Avengers. Sponsorships and fundraising To raise funds for plane tickets and other expenses, students were able to apply their business skills in another manner– by hosting a fundraiser selling ad space on their travel t-shirts. "In addition to selling the ad space, local businesses and organizations were given the opportunity to sponsor the trip and in exchange participating students are creating social media ads for these local businesses throughout their travels," shared Geiger. She continued, sharing she cannot thank the community enough. "It just was amazing because the kids only had roughly 10 days to raise funds for the trip," added Geiger. Geiger shared her gratitude to JA for hosting these competitions and creating opportunities for students around the world, saying: "It's really hard to find ways to challenge students academically competitively, especially in a business setting. There are lots of opportunities for athletics, but not as many for academic challenges so I am very grateful."