In an effort to support youth entrepreneurship education and business creation, our local young professionals council (NFTE Ventures), will launch the Start It Up Fund. The purpose of the fund is to provide access to capital for our brightest students so that they can scale their businesses, and ultimately their careers.
As an entrepreneurship program that focuses on youth development and business creation, this project will enable young people to self-identify business needs and request seed funding from the Start It Up Fund. Students will submit an overview of their expense request to the NFTE Ventures Council, explain the business impact and relevancy of the request, and follow up with information regarding actual spending outcomes. This will provide students with direct access to capital for their ventures.
By supporting NFTE NY Metro and the NFTE Venture's Start It Up Fund, we will be able to provide our students with much-needed access to funding as they build their businesses. Our project will provide NFTE students with the ability to produce their own products, marketing materials, and pay for operating expenses. Requesting funding for business expenses from the Start It Up Fund will provide students with a reliable funding source to put their plans and entrepreneurial skills into action.
NFTE NY Metro has served nearly 70,000 students since 1987 and will support over 3,000 students in the 2013-2014 school year. By working to keep at-risk students engaged in their school work, NFTE spurs its participants to graduate high school and dare to dream of a brighter future. Whether they pursue higher education, enter the workforce, or start their own business, NFTE instills an entrepreneurial mindset in young people so they can plan for success.