Entrepreneurship program a good addition at Central High School

Our educational system cannot be all things to all people. Over the years, there have been obvious gaps in education. For instance, students were learning the quadratic equations, but not how to count back change. They were learning iambic pentameter, but not how to manage the flow of personal finances.

Schools have been working on some of those gaps. Central High School has added a program to fill in educational gaps for budding entrepreneurs.

Central will introduce a program called "Youth Entrepreneurs, or YE, which Tony Robinson calls an exciting opportunity for students and the local business community.

Robinson, deputy superintendent of secondary education at the Cape School District, said he learned of the program at a school district for which he worked in the past.

"I thought it was a great opportunity for the students here at CHS because of the skills and experience they'll learn," Robinson told reporter Marybeth Niederkorn. "I also like the company's vision and their support."

According to Niederkorn's report, Robinson said the company, YE, will provide a staff member, Pam Pensel, to coordinate the program, and YE -- a not-for-profit organization -- pays for that staff member's training, for resources and materials, then provides support.

"The business department saw this as a good opportunity to integrate the entrepreneur course [already in place]," Robinson said.

In the program, students will come up with business ideas that can play out in the school environment, and they'll work on developing the plans and learn how to run a business with small loans. Students will also be able to develop relationships with other YEs across the country.

This sounds like a great program that will help students at a young age start to understand what it takes to start and run a small business. We think this will be a wonderful addition to the education students can receive in Cape's public schools.