Camp simulates business model for 60 area high school students

Perryville High School Junior Lyndsey Weisbrod spent much of today away from the classroom and in Cape Girardeau serving as CEO of Izumi Inc.

Throughout the day her team of five made decisions on how much to spend on research, development, marketing and charitable giving. By the end of the day Izumi was hoping to create a halo generator, but you won't find the product in a store.

That's because the company only exists at the 16th annual Camp Enterprise, a one-day business simulation and seminar attended by 60 students from 14 area schools. Students separated from their classmates and were assigned to one of 12 teams with the goal of becoming the top two finishers by the end of the competition, which is simulating the operation of a business for 18 five-minute quarters in the morning and 30 three-minute quarters this afternoon.

For Weisbrod the experience was an unforgettable learning experience.

"I enjoyed learning how an actual business operates," Weisbrod said. "Most people our age don't realize the basics of what a corporation goes through to develop a product."

Five Southeast Missouri Rotary Clubs, Junior Achievement and 23 businesses sponsored the competition held at the Cape Girardeau Career and Technology Center. Camp Enterprise chairperson Brigitte Bollerslev of Jackson underscored the importance of the students learning such skills.

"Forming a company and going through the process of creating a product is valuable for those who participated in Camp Entrprise," Bollerslev said. "That's helpful especially in the tight economy we're in today."Look for more on this story later in the evening at semissourian.com and in Saturday's edition of the Southeast Missourian.bblackwell@semissourian.com388-3628