Friends of Santa

NEWS RELEASE

For Immediate Release

LOCAL STUDENTS TO PARTICIPATE IN SUMMER ENTREPRENEURSHIP EDUCATION PROGRAM

Local middle school students from Laing Middle School have been selected to participate in a three week enrichment program to teach kids about starting and operating a business!

CHARLESTON SC, June 9, 2008 -Friends of Santa and YEScarolina have partnered together to offer a three week entrepreneurship education program for fifteen local rising eighth grade students. At the completion of this course, each student will have a business plan in hand along with start-up seed money and guidance to help unleash their entrepreneurial spirit now, not in the distant future. The course begins June 9 at Laing Middle School. Students will compete by pitching their plans to local businessmen. An awards ceremony will be held July 17 to recognize their achievements.

Friends of Santa is an organization that has worked for twenty-five years to ease the effects of poverty for families East of the Cooper. YEScarolina, is a local organization with the mission to train teachers to teach entrepreneurship. YEScarolina is the program partner for the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) in South Carolina. Friends of Santa and YEScarolina are proud to announce this educational opportunity.

The East Cooper Young Entrepreneurs will be taught by Lisa Seeber and Morgan McConnell, both Certified Entrepreneurship Teachers. Ms. Seeber, a teacher at Laing Middle School, was recently selected as one of the best from a pool of educators with diverse backgrounds from all over the state.

Friends of Santa is celebrating its silver anniversary of service for the East Cooper area. It is a volunteer program that to date has raised over a million dollars to assist families throughout the year with food, shelter, clothing and toys. Friends of Santa has paid for emergency items such as fuel oil, electricity, gas, medications, stoves, refrigerators and children's eyeglasses. This year's Christmas in July celebration will be held July 24 on Sullivan's Island featuring East Coast Party Band. For more information contact Friends of Santa at friendsofsanta@excite.com.

YEScarolina, a Program Partner of the NFTE, is a nonprofit organization created to offer South Carolina educators the opportunity to utilize curriculum written by acclaimed business teacher Steve Mariotti, founder of NFTE. Through entrepreneurship education, YEScarolina helps young people from communities statewide build skills and unlock their entrepreneurial creativity. From 2003 to 2008, YEScarolina has trained 380 NFTE Certified Entrepreneurship Teachers that have in turn touched thousands of young South Carolinians with this wonderful and innovative entrepreneurship curriculum. For more information, contact YEScarolina at www.yescarolina.com.