For Teachers
Awards
- 1st Place: Each team member will receive $100 and a trophy. Advisors will receive $500 and a trophy.
- 2nd Place: Each team member will receive $50 and a trophy. Advisors will receive $300 and a trophy.
- 3rd Place: Each team member will receive $25 and a trophy. Advisors will receive $200 and a trophy.
- 4th Place: Each team member will receive a trophy. Advisors will receive $100 and a trophy.
- 1st Place: Each team member will receive $100 and a trophy. Advisors will receive $500 and a trophy.
- 2nd Place: Each team member will receive $50 and a trophy. Advisors will receive $300 and a trophy.
- 3rd Place: Each team member will receive $25 and a trophy. Advisors will receive $200 and a trophy.
- 4th Place: Each team member will receive a trophy. Advisors will receive $100 and a trophy.
- 1st Place: Each team member will receive $100 and a trophy. Advisors will receive $500 and a trophy.
- 2nd Place: Each team member will receive $50 and a trophy. Advisors will receive $300 and a trophy.
- 3rd Place: Each team member will receive $25 and a trophy. Advisors will receive $200 and a trophy.
- 4th Place: Each team member will receive a trophy. Advisors will receive $100 and a trophy.
- 1st Place: Each team member will receive $100 and a trophy. Advisors will receive $500 and a trophy.
- 2nd Place: Each team member will receive $50 and a trophy. Advisors will receive $300 and a trophy.
- 3rd Place: Each team member will receive $25 and a trophy. Advisors will receive $200 and a trophy.
- 4th Place: Each team member will receive a trophy. Advisors will receive $100 and a trophy.
Forms to download
Training
Registration
| Intent To Compete Form | W9 Form |
Competition Rules
Round 1 - Official Rules and Requirements:
Who can participate? - The competition is open to all students and aspiring entrepreneurs, grades 5-8, enrolled at any Arkansas school.
Team Size - Student teams should consist of at least 2 and no more than 6 members.
Teacher Advisor - The student must be sponsored by a K-12 teacher, who is not a parent of any team member. Teacher advisors may represent more than one business plan.
Original Work - The business plan must represent the original work of each contestant, though teacher advisors are encouraged to provide guidance. Each team is expected to conduct themselves in an ethical manner.
Business Plan - Each team must submit a business plan for a new product or service. The business plan must address all aspects of the business. The business must be for-profit; non-profit organizations are not eligible. Each student team may only submit one plan. The business plan will include the following sections: cover page, table of contents, company overview, product or service description, marketing plan, and financials. The business plan is limited to 5-pages of typed text, with 12-point font. The cover page and table of contents are not counted in the total number of pages. More information can be found in the Teacher Training Manual.
Submitting the Plan - All plans should be e-mailed to kdaniels@arcapital.com by 5:00pm on October 30, 2009. (Reminder: Students should save copies of all of their work). If mailing is preferred over emailing, please mail 5 copies of each plan to Kerri Daniels at the address shown here.
Judging of the Plans - A panel of judges will evaluate the plans in 5 regions of Arkansas. The top 25 business plans will be selected as finalists. The judging is based both subjectively and objectively on the evaluation guidelines and the impressions formed by the business experiences of the judges. All judges ultimately consider the entire business concept looking at overall feasibility, combined with the potential to generate revenue, and the ability to implement the business. Announcement of the finalists will be posted online on November 18, 2009 at 4:00pm. Teacher advisors of the 1st, 2nd, 3rd, and 4th place teams will each receive a cash award.
Major Dates: - See the dates listed in the competition timeline. The first date to look out for is September 30, 2009. This is when the intent to compete form is due.
Round 1 - Evaluation Guidelines (30 points total)
Business Plan Format (5 points) - The business plan will include the cover page and the business plan. The business plan is limited to 5-pages of typed text, with a 12 point font. The cover page is not counted in the total number of pages. The cover page must include the: (1) teacher advisor's name, (2) student names, (3) contact information (including e-mail, telephone, address, school name, and the name of the company).
Section 1: Company Overview (5 points) - Includes a mission (what you want to do), company history, goals, objectives (where do you want your business to be three months from today), and the backgrounds and roles of the management team.
Section 2: Product or Service Description (5 points) - Describes the product, its features and benefits, and explains why the product is better than that of the competitors. Innovation/Creativity (5 points) - Presents an opportunity to turn ideas into new products or services for a business.
Section 3: Marketing Strategy (5 points) - Defines the target market and sales approach.
Section 4: Financials (5 points) - Includes: (1) a statement of what funds you will need and (2) an income statement.
Round 2 - Official Rules and Requirements:
Who can participate? - The top 25 teams selected from Round 1 are eligible to compete in Round 2.
Students who continue to this round must also:
- Produce a marketing piece (due December 11, 2009). The teams may select one of the following as their marketing piece: (a) a One-Page Flyer, or (b) Printed Brochure, or (c) 30-60 second Radio or TV Commercial.
- Produce products for sale during the Expo event. If the business plan was created for a service, then a presentation board describing the service must be on display.
- Display the product or service during the Expo event.
Receive a Loan to Start Your Business (optional) - For this round, each team also has the option of receiving a loan (up to $250*) for the development of products, design of the product, creation of a proof-of-concept, and/or creating the booth display. Regions Bank will provide this loan. Proceeds from the sale of the team's products must be used to repay the Bank. If a team does not make enough profit to repay their loan for the full amount, Regions Bank will not require the team to repay the rest of the loan. Arkansas Capital Corporation will provide guidance to receive this loan and the rules for reimbursement. The last day to apply for a loan is November 30, 2009 by 5:00pm.
*The amount available for a loan ($250) may be reduced based on the total number of teams applying for a loan.
Judging - Retail booth displays will be judged during the Expo Event prior to the Awards Ceremony. The Y.E.S. Awards Ceremony will take place on January 15, 2010. Trophies and cash prizes for all categories will be awarded to the winning teams and teachers during the awards ceremony following a few words from our Keynote Speaker. Students may win in more than one category.
Round 2 - Evaluation Guidelines (75 points Total)
Marketing Piece (30 points) - Describes the product, its features and benefits, and explains why the product is better than that of the competitors. Also defines the price of the product, where the product will be sold, and how the product can be purchased. Other elements of the marketing piece include innovation, creativity, and visual appeal.
Booth Display (45 points) - Elements of booth design: Color, lighting, signage, and focus. Elements of display: Focus, features and benefits, props, streamlined, student presentation (as members of the team/company, did the students present themselves and their product well?).
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: What is entrepreneurship?
A: Entrepreneurship is the process of organizing, managing, and assuming the risk of starting a new business or enterprise in response to identified opportunities.
Q: I am not familiar with entrepreneurship, how can I learn more?
A: In addition to the training that AEAF provides, there are many useful websites that you can go to find out more about entrepreneurship. Two good sources include The Consortium for Entrepreneurship Education
and the National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship.
Q: Why should I encourage my students to enter the competition?
A: Entrepreneurship education does not just contribute to growing the next wave of entrepreneurs. Communities that embrace entrepreneurship education (through curriculum, experiential, and mentoring programs) find that students perform better in school, and that a school's overall performance also improves.
Q: Do I have to be trained by AEAF to participate in this business plan competition? If I have previously attended an AEAF training session, should I attend another training session?
A: Training by AEAF is not required in order for teachers to sponsor students in the competition. AEAF is in the process of developing training manuals and online aids to assist in the process. If you have previously attended an AEAF training session, attending another session is only recommended if you would like to have a refresher course on entrepreneurship.
Q: What are the expectations of students for Y.E.S.?
A: Each team is expected to conduct themselves in an ethical manner. The business plan must also represent the original work of each contestant. For Round 1, the end result for each team should be one business plan that follows the guidelines as defined in the Official Rules and Requirements. For Round 2, the top 25 finalists will be required to product a marketing piece, produce products for sale, and to display the product based on the guidelines.
Q: What are the expectations of teachers for Y.E.S.?
A: Although the business plan must be the original work of each contestant, it is highly recommended that the teacher advisor guide the students through the learning process as you would with the content for any course you may teach.
Q: How long does it take to write a business plan?
A: Writing a business plan and the process of developing a concept that can be competitive in today's marketplace does not occur overnight. Oftentimes, a business plan is developed over the course of a semester.
Q: The rules state that "non-profit organizations are not eligible" to enter the competition. What do you mean by this?
A: Non-profit organizations generally exist to service some public need without the intent to make a profit. These organizations are usually funded by donations. Non-profits are also operated by members/participants to serve beneficiaries; for-profit organizations, on the other hand serve customers. Examples of non-profit organizations include charity drives, soup kitchens, etcetera.
Q: What are some examples of 'innovation'?
A: The rules define innovation as "turning ideas into new products or services for a business." Examples of this include: Clorox's Toilet Wand, Apple's iPod, and 3M's Post-it Notes.
Q: The loan sounds like a great idea, but what if my students don't make enough profit to repay the loan?
A: If you were to take a loan from a bank in real-life, then you would have to pay the entire loan back. This loan is different. YES for Arkansas will require repayment of the money if the student is able to make that money back (i.e. profit) at the expo. If you don't, then they will forgive the student's remaining balance, meaning that the student is not required to repay the remaining balance on the account. For example, if the student takes out a loan of $100 and only makes $70 in sales, then we will only expect them to repay the $70 they made from their sales during the Expo. We will not require students to repay the remaining $30. This is an optional loan and students are not required to take a loan to participate in Round 2. For the students, we believe that having them go through the loan process will provide students first hand experience in applying for and receiving a loan (but without the risk).
Q: If my students enter the competition, can someone take their concept?
A: The judges who will look at the concept are there solely to judge. AEAF selects judges who we feel have the best interest of the student's in mind. We cannot guarantee that the judges will not talk about the concept. They will have to in order to judge for the competition, but we can say that in most business plan competitions, this usually does not happen.
Q: What if I have other questions?
A: AEAF welcomes your questions, suggestions, and comments on how we can improve the program to meet the needs of Arkansas's educators.