For years, school-grade children have run into Gus A. Stavros Institute eager to play grownup.
Now United Way Suncoast’s brightly-colored branding will greet their smiling faces as they engage in the Enterprise Village and Finance Park programs at the Stavros Center.
After weeks in the classroom, they embark on an immersive learning experience. United Way Suncoast proudly partners with the Pinellas Education Foundation in having two spaces at the Stavros Institute.
Bosses For A Day
Each student that enters Enterprise Village and Finance Park receives the opportunity to experience real-world economic lessons that follow them into adulthood. As they walk through Enterprise Village, they get a chance to take over more than 20 business storefronts. The elementary school students emerge themselves into a business day. They get to play grown-up roles as they receive a paycheck and get to make purchases and donations in the stores.
The immersive lessons continue in eighth grade when the students then get to experience Finance Park. Here, the children learn the value of budgeting, time management, and fiscal responsibility. The students interact with a firsthand understanding of expenses, career opportunities, salaries, and financial planning. United Way Suncoast shares the Finance Park space with the Pinellas Community Foundation and the Pinellas Education Foundation.
UWS’ Warm Colors Shine
As you walk into both spaces, the United Way Suncoast warm colors grab your attention. Creative Services Director Jodi Salice worked with Marketing and Communications Senior Manager Devan Endlich to design the space along with input from the other foundations. Endlich attended the grand opening along with CEO Jessica Muroff, Communications Senior Vice President Ernest Hooper and administrative assistant Jamie Zale.
On Wednesday, United Way Suncoast revealed their spaces at Enterprise Village and Finance Park. Both spaces will help students learn ways they can make a difference in our community. They’ll see the impact of volunteering and donating. They also discover all the viable career possibilities. As the students are placed in a career, they learn the different skills and missions of organizations in Tampa Bay.
Stacy Baier, the CEO of the Pinellas Education Foundation, said the memories crafted at the Stavros Institute last a lifetime.
“When I meet adults who participated in Enterprise Village, they always share what career they had,” Baier said. “They may be 30, but they still talk about what they did here.”
United Way Suncoast proudly to enhances these core memories that many describe as “their best educational experience.” We look forward to continuing our partnership in cultivating impactful experiences with the Pinellas Education Foundation.
