Junior Achievement (JA) and Gorham Savings Bank (GSB) reached out to seventh grade social studies teacher Mary Ridge in the beginning of the year and invited one of her classes to represent Gorham Middle School in the first-ever LaunchPad Junior Program.
Ridge would only accept if all of her classes (102 students) could participate. “I believe firmly in equity and needed all of my talent there to be part of the exciting experience,” said Ridge. Thus, it became Ridge’s own personal challenge.
Two other local schools were given the opportunity to participate (Lincoln Middle School of Portland, and Mahoney Middle School of South Portland) but they chose just one class to represent the school. All three schools were assigned the task of creating a Teen Center. Each of the three schools came away with a $1,000 check to start making their Teen Center a reality one day.
Photo credit Andrea MorrellRepresentatives from Mary Ridge’s seventh grade social studies classes recently pitched their idea for a Teen Center in Gorham at Gorham Savings Bank’s inaugural LaunchPad Junior event on June 6. Pictured (left to right) are Mark Thibodeau, Brooke Guimond, Dylan Morrell, Aiden Dever and Mrs. Ridge.
“My four amazing social studies classes brainstormed lots of creative ideas and worked diligently in small groups. The combined efforts eventually merged into our all-inclusive model we voted to use,” said Ridge.
“The collaboration, teamwork, innovative contributions, and positive energy resulted in our ‘Just 4 Teens Community Center’ and I absolutely loved our logo and tagline…‘The Only Missing Piece Is You,’ ” said Ridge.
The must-have components included the proposed Teen Center, a well-devised pitch, and student representatives for a Q&A session during intermission of GSB’s fifth annual $50,000 LaunchPad business competition.
Throughout the endeavor, students kept noting the important characteristics they would like to see in a Teen Center. Support, passion, encouragement, and a welcoming environment were all considered necessary.
“I am thrilled with the presence and depth these inspiring young people achieved. My hope is for them to become their personal best and to continue to be an integral member of so wonderful a community,” said Ridge.
Ridge hopes that the partnership these students had with GSB and JA has motivated them to morph from what she refers to as “Juniorpreneurs” into entrepreneurs who may compete in the LaunchPad program one day themselves as adults.
After the event, Ridge met with 36 of the participating students who worked on the Teen Center to ponder where they go from here. The meeting resulted in a plan to hopefully make the Teen Center a reality by the time they graduate in 2022.