Thanks to Gorham Savings Bank’s partnership with Junior Achievement, middle schoolers in Maine now have the chance to participate in LaunchPad through the JA “It’s My Business!” program. The process was designed to encourage independent, creative and critical thinking while emphasizing teamwork and engendering self-confidence in all participating students.

The process begins with students working together in groups to brainstorm ideas for a business to fill a need in their community. The whole class works together to contribute to the idea. Throughout the process, the students apply concepts they learn in a wide range of previous lessons. Each class then elects a group of three or four students to represent both their idea and their middle school at the LaunchPad event in front of a live audience of hundreds of Maine entrepreneurs and business professionals.

Volunteers from Gorham Savings Bank teach the LaunchPad Junior lessons. During the lessons, volunteers work with the students as they conceive and work together to refine ideas—a process that ultimately produces the “pitch videos” that will be played during the live LaunchPad event. At the event, each of the elected student groups will be invited on stage to answer questions about what they learned.

2019

1st Place – Saco Middle School
2nd Place – Falmouth Middle School
3rd Place – Windham Middle School

2018

1st Place – Bonny Eagle Middle School (Buxton)
2nd Place – Memorial Middle School (South Portland)
3rd Place – King Middle School (Portland)

2017

1st Place – Mahoney Middle School (South Portland)
2nd Place – Gorham Middle School
3rd Place – Lincoln Middle School (Portland)