Local Media, mentioned
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Steve Gonabe, National Director of Human Resources
“I am extremely proud of the participation of our employees in starting up our JA efforts at Kammann, Harden and Loma Vista Schools. Through JA we are having and will continue to have an impact on children's views of their environment and business. We are looking forward to having other businesses in Salinas join us.”
Diedre Lemp, in Planning and Comunication
“[The Kammann School program] was one of the biggest initial starts for Junior Achievement—and the biggest in Salinas. It was the first time any business of Household’s size has rolled out a program here.”
Mark Yanke, in Financial Services – Kammann & Harden schools’ volunteer
“The idea is to take the schoolwork they do and stuff they enjoy doing and see how that relates to a job.” He taught 2nd grade at Kammann and 8th grade at Harden. YANKE’S INTRODUCTION TO JA CAME AS A HIGH SCHOOL STUDENT—“ IT REALLY DREW ME TO BUSINESS.”
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: April 29, 2002
For more information: Diedre Lemp
831-772-6712
Santa Clara and Salinas, California. Junior Achievement of Santa Clara County (serving Monterey, Santa Cruz, San Benito and Santa Clara Counties) held its annual Business Hall of Fame on April 11, 2002, honoring six key business leaders who positively impacted local education in 2002. The monetary goal was just $5,000 short for Junior Achievement's largest yearly fundraiser when the evening began. Household International's (NYSE: HI) credit card services unit, based in Salinas, allowed Junior Achievement to achieve a record goal.
This generous gesture is typical of the relationship Household has developed with Junior Achievement over the last year. And the connection to create this blueprint for an ideal business and community partnership started with just one person having a great Junior Achievement experience at her local school. In Spring, 2001, after Christine Matus completed teaching her son's 4th grade class at Kammann Elementary School in Salinas, she went to Household management to suggest company participation in Junior Achievement.
With Junior Achievement partnerships in other U.S. locations and local education being a key initiative, the Household management team in Salinas decided to charge forward quickly. Under the leadership of Bobby Mehta, Group Executive for Domestic MasterCard and Visa Business, and Steve Gonabe, National Director of Human Resources, the first action placed Junior Achievement volunteers from Household in all 42 classrooms of Kammann Elementary School for 5 weeks starting October, 2001. Household capped this experience with a "tea and tour" for Kammann's school staff.
Household volunteers did not want to stop there. Starting in March, 2002, 15 volunteers are teaching Personal Economics for all 8th grade students at Harden Middle School for eight weekly sessions. Additionally 22 volunteers will teach Junior Achievement to all K-6th grades at Loma Vista School in Salinas by June 2002. Household's Steve Gonabe asserts, "I am extremely proud of the participation of our employees in starting up our JA efforts at Kammann, Harden and Loma Vista Schools. Through JA we are having and will continue to have an impact on children's views of their environment and business. We are looking forward to having other businesses in Salinas join us."
Household management is matching the volunteers' spirit with tactical dollars donated to Junior Achievement: $500 per classroom volunteer and sponsoring the Bowlathon on April 7, 2002 simultaneously with other Household divisions across the U.S. Household's Bowlathon volunteers raised $15,000 through their own pledges and Household has matched all pledges of $25 and higher. And last but not least for the moment, Household sponsored multiple tables at the April 11, 2002 Business Hall of Fame, provided the bus for employees to attend, and THEN boosted Junior Achievement's evening into the record books.
Household will continue to set local economic education trends with Bobby Mehta's joining Junior Achievement's Board of Directors in March 2002. Together, Household and Junior Achievement plans are being made to have even greater impact on children in Salinas. And companies can start with just one volunteer helping a classroom of students.
Household's credit card services group, headquartered in Salinas, employs more than 1,500 people on the Central Coast. Household's businesses are leading providers of consumer loan, credit card, auto finance and credit insurance products in the United States, United Kingdom and Canada. In the United States, Household's largest business, founded in 1878, operates under the two oldest and most widely recognized names in consumer finance-HFC and Beneficial. Household is also one of the nation's largest issuers of private-label and general purpose credit cards, including The GM Card
Junior Achievement of Santa Clara County is the premier K - 12 local economic education organization, serving Monterey, Santa Cruz, San Benito and Santa Clara Counties. Globally, Junior Achievement is the largest and fastest-growing nonprofit economic education organization, annually teaching over 4 million elementary, middle school and high school students in 106 countries. Since 1953, Junior Achievement has partnered with Silicon Valley and Monterey Bay businesses, communities and educational institutions to help young people familiarize themselves with business concepts. Junior Achievement's mission is for students to be inspired and educated by volunteer role models, who help these youth succeed by linking education to the world of work. Junior Achievement's unique approach to accomplish its mission is that local business organizations' volunteers combine their work experience with up-to-date Junior Achievement-developed courses to teach students how to apply basic skills and critical thinking to solve complex problems in the "real world." Armed with this fundamental business and community understanding, 25,000 students annually, in every school grade, learn to become active contributors to the Silicon Valley and Monterey Bay economy. Junior Achievement of Santa Clara County: Making local economic education impact, one classroom at a time. For more information and to volunteer, visit http://www.jascc.org or call 408-988-8915.
