TOLEDO, Ohio — Junior Achievement (JA) has been preparing kids in northwest Ohio for their future since the 1940s.
The organization teaches life lessons and skills like financial literacy and entrepreneurship.
JA of Northwestern Ohio President Jim Pollock says it's the skills that aren't usually taught in a classroom.
"For entirely too many years, kids have been graduating from high school not knowing what they're doing next. They can't see future success and they certainly don't know what path to take to get there," Pollock said.
He says the organization works to solve the "unknowns" for the younger generation.
They connect with students and expose them to the opportunities and paths that are available to them.
Pollock says one of the things he hears all the time is how others wish they would have learned what JA teaches.
"We think it's critical and it's not just for the students," he said. "I think a lot of our society could use the same skills now because we hear often from kids that have graduated from college. They say, boy, I wish I would have known and I wish I could have gone through what you're teaching now when I was younger."
JA has programs and events for youth of all ages. In March, they will launch a new program called "JA Creative Problem Solving."
"It's all about being able to collaborate, identify problems, come up with creative solutions. How to brainstorm, how to ideate, how to pitch your solution. But, it's all on the basis of solving community challenges or solving community problems," Pollock said.
It's a two-part, online program that geared for kids in high school. You can find more information about it here.
Pollock says the pandemic has made these learning experiences more important now than ever before.