Our Blog
Registration Now Open for Junior Achievement BizTown® Summer Entrepreneur Camp
By Cathy Essick
Entrepreneurship
Future entrepreneurs start here. Junior Achievement BizTown® Summer Entrepreneur Camp gives students a week of business creation, career exploration, and hands-on learning—including field trips, industry activities, and running their own...
From Case Challenges to Culminating Wins: Tyler Gerhold’s 3DE™ Journey
By Cathy Essick
Work Readiness
Alburnett 9th grader Tyler Gerhold is making an impact in 3DE™, demonstrating leadership, teamwork, and strong presentation skills. Tyler and his team have already won two Culminating Events this year and continue to stand out as problem-solvers and...
Connecting Students to Their Future: Dawn Bowlus’ 15+ Years of Impact with Junior Achievement
By Cathy Essick
Community Involvement
Dawn Bowlus has spent more than 25 years helping students develop innovation, invention, and entrepreneurship skills through her work at the University of Iowa. As a Junior Achievement board member and volunteer for more than 15 years, she is passionate about connecting students with their community and helping them explore their future through programs like the JA Dream...
Staci Mueller - Rooted in Community, Dedicated to Students
By Cathy Essick
Community Involvement
For nearly 15 years, Staci Mueller has been a consistent and caring presence in Ms. Fowler’s first-grade classroom at Denver Elementary, teaching JA Our Families and introducing students to foundational financial literacy concepts. A lifelong Bremer County resident and Scholarship Program Manager at the Community Foundation of Northeast Iowa, Staci first began volunteering after a teacher...
Educator Spotlight: Jill Koch Inspires Students to Think Strategically Through the JA Stock Market Challenge®
By Cathy Essick
Financial Literacy
Jill Koch, Program for Academic and Creative Talent (PACT) Coordinator at Cedar Rapids Kennedy High School, has seen firsthand how the JA Stock Market Challenge® inspires students to think critically, work strategically, and build confidence in financial decision-making. What began as chaperoning a single team has grown into years of participation, with students returning again and again because...
From the Ballpark to the Classroom: Andrea Brommelkamp’s Commitment to Empowering Students
By Cathy Essick
Corporate Responsibility
Andrea Brommelkamp has been volunteering with Junior Achievement of Eastern Iowa since 2013, teaching elementary students and supporting programs like JA BizTown® Mobile, JA Finance Park® Mobile, and 3DE™ by Junior Achievement. Now serving on the JAEI Corridor Community Impact Board and working in Business Development at Corda Credit Union, Andrea is passionate about helping students explore...
Educator Spotlight: Stephanie Kramer Inspires Students Through Real-World Investing
By Cathy Essick
Financial Literacy
Stephanie Kramer, Business and Computer Science Teacher at Springville High School, has seen firsthand how the JA Stock Market Challenge® transforms classroom learning into real-world experience. For the past five years, she has brought her students to compete in the fast-paced trading simulation, where they apply investing concepts, react to live news, and work together to make strategic...
Meet Josie Bitter: Strengthening the Relationships Behind Student Impact
By Cathy Essick
Financial Literacy
Junior Achievement of Eastern Iowa welcomes Josie Bitter as Stewardship Coordinator. With a background in relationship management and a passion for supporting young people, Josie will help strengthen donor partnerships that make JA’s work possible. A Cedar Valley native and foster mom, she is energized to support JA’s mission and help expand opportunity for students across Eastern...
The Market Is About to Open. Are You In?
By Cathy Essick
Community Involvement
The JA Stock Market Challenge® is almost here—and the energy is unmatched. From flashing stock prices to split-second trading decisions, this fast-paced simulation transforms the room into a high-energy trading floor. With events in Cedar Rapids and Cedar Falls, corporate teams, students, and young professionals have the chance to compete, collaborate, and experience the thrill of the market—all...
JA’s Outcomes-Based Strategic Blueprint
Blog from JA USA
By Elizabeth Stepanek
Corporate Responsibility
At Junior Achievement, we believe every student deserves a future filled with choices and opportunities. That belief is the foundation of JA’s outcomes-based strategic blueprint; a clear, intentional approach to education that starts not with programs, but with the outcomes that matter most for students’ long-term...
