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Waldwick HS students partner with Kenyan kids to start businesses
Waldwick High School students team up with young students in Kenya to start a business with limited funding.
Marsha A. Stoltz, NorthJersey.com
WALDWICK — There wasn’t an ocean in sight, but Waldwick High School students created a “Shark Tank”-style event Tuesday with students in Kenya via Zoom, identifying local projects in need of sponsors and helping raise funds.
Waldwick High School’s Global Awareness Club is one of 20 Bergen County student programs participating in The Empathy, Equality, Entrepreneurship Mission (TEEEM), which educates students about global issues and humanity.
This year, Waldwick’s class connected with Kenyan students through the Grace Project. The students met weekly via Zoom for an hour of English reading and discussion classes. Among these, it has been suggested that teachers from both countries collaborate on a “Shark Tank” television show where the students showcase their products and services in order to attract financial investors.
Waldwick teacher Ted Opderbeck said the students did some “creative fundraising” including “food and donations” at the local Bombay Hut restaurant. Students raised $2,000, which TEEEM matched to create a $4,000 prize purse and divided it among the three presentation teams.
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“Students in Kenya studied the issue and developed ideas to create real practical business solutions to the problem,” Opderbeek said. “My students helped by putting information on slides, helping with presentation skills, and reviewing/building budgets.”
Waldwick junior Caitlin Hu estimates her team met with Kenyan students about six times before school to create a secondary clothing store.
“Our role was to help create and expand the idea,” Caitlin said. “The best part was helping them evaluate the items for sale and the pricing. It was an eye-opener. We didn’t think much about getting a lot of clothes.”
The teams took turns giving a five-minute presentation, followed by a question-and-answer session for four judges, TEEEM officers and Waldwick SurveyPro Office and Marketing Manager Karen Sentaro.
First place winner Petal Care received $2,500 to start a feminine hygiene product business. Second, Afia Bora Investment received $1,500 for its plan to improve food crop production. The third-place winner, Buy Our Own Build, received $1,000 to start a thrift store.
“Watching Kenyan students come up with their ideas and receive TEEEM funding to put their plans into action was a powerful and emotional experience,” said Centauro.
For more information about TEEEM, visit TEEEM.org. For more information about the Grace Project, visit graceproject.org.
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