Youth entrepreneurship program proposed to council
They returned just over a week ago from a ?Creating Entrepreneurial Communities? training program, but it has not taken Presque Isle County representatives Bill Valentine and Dave Nadolsky long to put what they have learned so far right to work. During Monday evening?s Rogers City Council meeting, the two members of Team Huron Shore, which is comprised of Alcona, Alpena, and Presque Isle Counties, proposed a youth entrepreneurship program called B.O.S.S.Y. (Business Oriented Success Strategies for Youth), which would eventually be implemented into local schools.
?WE WANT to encourage young people to stay in our community as business people,? said Valentine during his presentation. ?We can begin to do this by developing entrepreneurial clubs in our schools ? what we call Business Innovative Groups, or BIG.? Valentine said with the three high schools within Presque Isle County, there would be a BIG RC (Rogers City High School), a BIG P (Posen High School), and a BIG O (Onaway High School). These entrepreneurial clubs would give students interested in business to ?take the leap? into business ownership. Clubs would conduct after school meetings, create individual and group projects, and participate in summer entrepreneurial camps at area outdoor centers. BIG projects could be presented at county fairs, and the club program would create the ability for teen entrepreneurs to network and find mentors within the business community. Valentine also reported that the initiative would provide a scholarship for area teens interested in business education.
?We already have $2,000 committed from local businesses to dedicate toward a scholarship program, and we have only been back 10 days,? said Valentine. The next step in the proposed program is to set up recruitment booths to attract interested students, and to implement the programs into area schools by the next academic year. Nadolsky said there would be a ?Business Buzz? meeting conducted at the Lighthouse Restaurant on April 4, beginning at 7:30 p.m.
?We have a lot of promising things happening in our community, and we?d like the opportunity to share them with people,? said Nadolsky.
IN OTHER city council news:
? It was reported that there are more than 100 people registered for this summer?s Sunrise Adventure bicycle tour sponsored by the League of Michigan Bicyclists (LMB). The bike tour is June 15-17 with Rogers City as its center point.
? Ordinance No. 2007-01 to amend the zoning designation in the Klann-Flemming Plat from
? Ordinance No. 2007-02 to allow recreational vehicle parks in the light industrial zoned districts was adopted and approved. ? Ordinance No. 2007-03 to amend the language regarding appeal procedures (ZBA) was approved and adopted.
? The Rogers City Optimist Club received approval to conduct their annual Cub Scout ?cubmobile races? on Huron Avenue, Saturday, May 5 from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m.
? The Rogers City Masonic Lodge received approval to use the portable band shell for its May 19 MiCHIP (Child Identification Program) event.
? The Rogers City Council gave its support of the Grambau Center Exploratory Committee in looking for viable and economically feasible options to the future use of the former Rogers City High School building. The city is interested in investigating the potential for creating a multi-use facility that will continue to serve the community for generations to come. This might include locating some of the city offices in the renovated building, along with community use and business office space.