Nordson Corporation Supports Junior Achievement of Georgia’s JA BizTown® Simulation Center to Enhance 25,000 Students’ Career Readiness Skills
ATLANTA–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Nordson
Corporation (Nasdaq: NDSN) is partnering with Junior Achievement
(JA) of Georgia to enhance Gwinnett County students’ financial literacy
and professional skills. Specifically, Nordson is providing a grant of
$170,000 to support the development and implementation of JA BizTown®,
one of two interactive venues within the Junior Achievement (JA)
Discovery Center at Gwinnett. The center will open in August 2015 in
time for the 2015-2016 school year and will serve more than 25,000 sixth
and eighth grade students.
“Nordson has had a significant presence in the state of Georgia for
decades. The Nordson Corporation Foundation, Nordson Corporation’s
giving arm, is dedicated to improving the quality of life in the regions
where we operate by improving educational outcomes that enable
individuals to become self-sufficient, active participants in the
community,” explains Nordson Corporation Foundation Executive Director
Cecilia Render. “The JA BizTown curriculum fits well into that mission,
so when the opportunity to be among the sponsors of this project was
presented, we knew we wanted to participate.”
The experience begins with in-class lessons of JA-provided curriculum,
then culminates with a day of business simulation at JA BizTown
presented by Cisco, where Nordson will sponsor a storefront. The
simulation creates an opportunity where students interact within an
economy and take on the role of employee, tax payer and consumer.
Students receive job assignments and work in teams at their assigned
business. By the end of the simulation each student completes a day’s
work, develops a personal budget and makes purchasing decisions.
The interactive simulation provides students the opportunity to not only
learn about finances and careers, but to transform into adults for one
day, becoming the sole decision maker and taking ownership of their
professional success.
“JA’s Discovery Center is reality-based, experiential learning at its
best,” explains Nordson Corporation Foundation Program Officer Cindy
Baumgardner, who represented Nordson Corporation locally throughout the
project. “When I heard about this comprehensive center coming to
Gwinnett, I immediately knew Nordson had to be involved! Strategic
investments in the futures of young scholars is what we are about. Our
presence and participation in JA BizTown will open up a world of career
possibilities and provide each student with skills that will serve them
well throughout their lives.”
“Today there is an increasing issue with businesses finding qualified
entry-level employees. By giving students the opportunity to participate
in a hands-on business simulation we are providing them with not only a
frame of reference as to what it means to be an employee, but also
giving them a glimpse into what their future can entail if they work
hard to achieve their dream,” said Jack Harris, president and CEO of
Junior Achievement of Georgia. “Thanks to partnerships with the
corporate community and local school system, JA is primed to provide the
curriculum, tools and experiential facility to prepare more students to
excel at the business of life.”
Georgia’s first JA BizTown opened in August 2013 at Junior Achievement’s
Chick-fil-A Foundation Discovery Center. Since then thousands have
benefited from the program. JA and its partners are proud to bring this
program to the students of Gwinnett County.
In addition to Nordson’s three-year sponsorship and donation for the
storefront build, Nordson is thankful to some longstanding partners who
helped in the production and building of Nordson’s storefront at JA
BizTown, including:
- Expotechnik USA – Graphics/design for the store
- iGad Productions – Monitors inside storefront
- Booker Promotions – BizTown Premium
- Scott Walker Photography – Photography
- Henkel Corporation – In kind donation and end products
- Suddath Relocation of Atlanta – Transportation
High resolution photo available at: http://www.nordson.com/en-us/about-nordson/news/PublishingImages/NDSN-JADC-21.jpg
Photo
Caption: Nordson Corporation employees Lauren Taylor and Cindy
Baumgardner at Nordson’s storefront at Georgia’s JA BizTown® Simulation
Center
About Nordson Corporation
Nordson Corporation delivers precision technology solutions that help
customers succeed worldwide. The company engineers, manufactures and
markets differentiated products and systems used for precision
dispensing of adhesives, coatings, sealants, biomaterials, fluids and
other materials, plastic extrusion and injection molding, electronics
testing and inspecting, and surface preparation, all supported by
application expertise and direct global sales and service. Nordson
serves a wide variety of consumer non-durable, durable and technology
end markets including packaging, nonwovens, electronics, medical,
appliances, energy, transportation, construction, and general product
assembly and finishing. Founded in 1954 and headquartered in Westlake,
Ohio, the company has operations and support offices in more than 30
countries. Visit Nordson on the web at www.nordson.com,
@Nordson_Corp,
or www.facebook.com/nordson.
About Junior Achievement of Georgia
Junior Achievement (JA) of Georgia is dedicated to giving young people
the knowledge and skills they need to own their economic success, plan
for their future, and make educated academic and economic choices. JA
programs are delivered by corporate and community volunteers, and
provide relevant, hands-on experiences to students from kindergarten
through high school. JA of Georgia offers multiple programs, including
in-class programs, JA BizTown, JA Finance Park, JA Fellows and JA-MBA,
all of which focus on entrepreneurship, personal financial literacy and
workforce readiness. During the 2014/2015 school year, JA of Georgia
served more than 168,000 students statewide through five district
offices located in Atlanta, Columbus, Dalton, Gainesville and Savannah.
For more information, visit www.georgia.ja.org.
Contacts
Nordson Corporation
James R. Jaye, Director, Communications &
Investor Relations, 440-414-5639
Jim.Jaye@nordson.com
or
Junior
Achievement of Georgia
Callie Majors, Senior Director, Marketing &
Public Relations, 404-257-4638
cmajors@georgia.ja.org
