Who’s Your Boss?
Right here in northeast Ohio, young entrepreneurs are having remarkable success in creating and marketing new products. WHO’S YOUR BOSS? — a PBS Western Reserve production funded by The Burton D. Morgan Foundation—celebrates National Entrepreneurship Week (Feb. 21 to Feb. 28, 2009) by profiling the achievements of six northeast Ohio youths and the organizations that support them. Comedian Jeff Blanchard interviews each of these young business owners and joins them on the job for a day to get a real-life feel for the work that they do:
Adrian Lindsey, a 17-year-old senior at Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy and resident of Akron, created All-Net Sak, a nylon basketball carrier that is for sale at Quicken Loans Arena, Wal-Mart in Severance City Mall and online.
Blaine Mickens, an 18-year-old recent graduate of Whitney Young School in Cleveland, is owner of a landscaping business called Estate Groomers and a residential painting company called Young Picasso Painting. He has five employees and ambitious future plans.
Jake Penwell, 19, a Shelby, Ohio, native who is now a freshman at Xavier University, helped start Albert Entertainment when he was in the 7th grade. The company offers disc jockey services.
Naomi and Noemi Romero, 16-year-old twins from Cleveland and seniors at John Hay High School, own and operate their own fur-suit business, Cosfurs. In 2008, they won $1,000 and first place in the E City business-plan contest for Cleveland students.
Jaizhou Yang, a 17-year-old student at University School in Cleveland and resident of Beachwood, wants to capitalize on video game trends by holding and promoting video game tournaments for teenage and college-age students. He raises philanthropic awareness by donating a portion of his proceeds to charity.
A PBS Western Reserve production, 2009.
Educational Resources
Subject Area: Social Studies; Entrepreneurship
Grade Level: 11
Adrian Lindsey, a 17-year-old senior at Cuyahoga Valley Christian Academy and resident of Akron, created All-Net Sak, a nylon basketball carrier that is for sale at Quicken Loans Arena, Wal-Mart in Severance City Mall and online.
Jiazhou Yang, a 17-year-old student at University School in Cleveland and resident of Beachwood, wants to capitalize on video game trends by holding and promoting video game tournaments for teenage and college-age students. He raises philanthropic awareness by donating a portion of his proceeds to charity.
Blaine Mickens, an 18-year-old recent graduate of Whitney Young School in Cleveland, is owner of Estate Groomers, a landscaping business, and Young Picasso Painting, a residential painting company. He has five employees and ambitious future plans.
Jake Penwell, a Shelby, Ohio, native who is now a freshman at Xavier University, helped start Albert Entertainment when he was in the 7th grade. The company offers disc jockey services.
Naomi and Noemi Romero, 16-year-old twins from Cleveland and seniors at John Hay High School, own and operate their own fur-suit business, Cosfurs. In 2008, they won $1,000 and first place in the E City business-plan contest for Cleveland students.