Monday, 12 Oct 2026 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida has been awarded a $55,000 grant from the Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation through its Fall 2026 grant cycle to support the JA SWFL Pre-Apprenticeship Program for Lee County high school seniors.
Monday, 12 Oct 2026 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida has been awarded a $55,000 grant from the Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation through its Fall 2026 grant cycle to support the JA SWFL Pre-Apprenticeship Program for Lee County high school seniors.
Monday, 29 Jun 2026 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida is honored to be the recipient of the Community Development Grant from First Citizens Bank. This generous $25,000 funding allocation will equip local students with measurable job-readiness skills and a clear pathway to employment and economic mobility in Collier and Lee Counties.
Suncoast Credit Union Foundation Provides $15,000 to Support Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida
Wednesday, 22 Apr 2026 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida (JA SWFL) announces a charitable gift of $15,000 from the Suncoast Credit Union Foundation to support JA Inspire, the organization’s large-scale career exploration experience serving middle and high school students across Lee and Collier Counties.
Thursday, 02 Apr 2026 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida recently hosted its 38th Annual Business Hall of Fame Gala at the Naples Grande Beach Resort, honoring outstanding business leaders across Southwest Florida. Nearly 400 business leaders and community members gathered on Tuesday, March 24, to celebrate the induction of the 2026 Laureates. This year's recipients included Ryan Carter, President of Scotlynn; David and Jerri Hoffmann, entrepreneurs and founders of Hoffmann Family of Companies; and entrepreneur Rebecca Maddox.
Thursday, 26 Feb 2026 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida's annual Business Hall of Fame will be held on Tuesday, March 24, at 5:30 p.m., at the Naples Grande Beach Resort. The event honors influential leaders whose dedication has expanded opportunities for youth and enhanced community learning through financial literacy, entrepreneurial thinking, and work readiness initiatives.
Tuesday, 10 Feb 2026 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida (JA) announces Ryan Carter, President of Scotlynn; David and Jerri Hoffmann, entrepreneurs and founders of Hoffmann Family of Companies; and Rebecca Maddox, entrepreneur, are to be inducted into the JA Business Hall of Fame on Tuesday, March 24, 2026, starting at 5:30 p.m. The ceremony will be hosted at the Naples Grande Beach Resort. It will honor the 2026 Laureates, who have demonstrated influential and visionary leadership that impacts the educational landscape for local youth in Southwest Florida, including entrepreneurship, work readiness, and financial literacy.
Thursday, 08 Jan 2026 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida is pleased to announce that Cheryl Kunkle will join as its CEO and President. With more than 23 years of experience, Kunkle is a seasoned leader in strategic growth and mission impact, recognized for building high-performing teams and securing impactful corporate alliances with mission-driven organizations.
Monday, 29 Dec 2025 | JA USA
Catherine “Cat” Zarate received the Emerging Leader award from The Community Foundation during the recent ENPY Awards ceremony. Zarate is the Business Operations Manager for Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida. This award recognizes rising stars in the nonprofit sector and celebrates individuals who demonstrate exceptional early-career excellence, initiative, and promise within the organization.
Tuesday, 09 Dec 2025 | JA USA
On November 6, 2025, Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida hosted its annual Virtual JA Inspire event for students in the School District of Lee County. This program aims to familiarize 8th-grade students with the workforce demands of our region's rapidly growing industries. This year’s live virtual event saw a 23% increase in participation, with 4,784 eighth graders logging on via a powerful career exploration platform. Following the event, the platform remains open for a full six months, providing access to all 6,741 8th-grade students in the School District of Lee County to continue exploring career options for future planning.
Monday, 08 Dec 2025 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida announces Tuesday, March 24, 2026, as the date for the annual Business Hall of Fame celebration. This prestigious event, held at Naples Grande Beach Resort, honors influential and visionary leaders and organizations that have significantly impacted the educational landscape for local youth in Southwest Florida, particularly in areas such as entrepreneurship, work readiness, and financial literacy.
Monday, 20 Oct 2025 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida recently welcomed Congressman Byron Donalds, distinguished Laureates, and business and community leaders from across the region to the 2025 Laureate Society Luncheon, a celebration of collaboration and collective investment in the next generation of Southwest Florida’s workforce. The event highlighted Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida’s expanding impact in financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and work-readiness education, with a special focus on its newest workforce initiative: the Pre-Apprenticeship Program.
Monday, 29 Sep 2025 | JA USA
After serving as the CEO and President of Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida for 10 years, Angela Fisher is concluding her tenure with the purpose-driven organization. Her leadership has led to immense growth and paved the way for the continued advancement of impactful programming that will offer students in Southwest Florida more opportunities to succeed.
Tuesday, 26 Aug 2025 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida is pleased to announce Lori Prew, CFRE, as its new Director of Development and Operations. In this role, Prew will oversee the agency’s fundraising initiative, enhance and nurture donor relations, maximize operational strategies, and deepen community connections.
Friday, 11 Apr 2025 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida received the Best Overall Charity Event Award for its Business Hall of Fame event from The Community Foundation. On Tuesday, April 8, 2025, the annual Charity Event Awards took place to celebrate and recognize excellence in philanthropy and event planning by honoring organizations, individuals, and teams that elevate charitable events and initiatives to new heights.
Tuesday, 08 Apr 2025 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida recently hosted its 37th annual Business Hall of Fame event honoring and recognizing business leaders in
Southwest Florida with a gala at the Naples Grande Beach Resort. On Tuesday, March 25, nearly 500 business leaders gathered to induct 2025 Laureates Timothy Cartwright, Partner and CoFounder at Fifth Avenue Family Office; William Price, Jr., Board Chairman, and Matthew Price, Chief Executive Officer, both with Seagate Development Group; and Aysegul Timur, Ph.D., President of Florida Gulf Coast University, into the Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida Business Hall of Fame.
Wednesday, 12 Mar 2025 | JA USA
The Junior Achievement Florida Foundation announces that a total of $70,000 in funding has been allocated to support the eight Junior Achievement chapters across Florida through a grant from State Farm. This funding is part of a national grant awarded by State Farm to Junior Achievement USA, which then distributed the funds to JA chapters in various states.
Thursday, 06 Mar 2025 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida's annual Business Hall of Fame will be held on Tuesday, March 25, at 5:30 p.m., at the Naples Grande Beach Resort. This event will celebrate the induction of the 2025 laureates who support the organization's goal and mission.
Wednesday, 05 Feb 2025 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida brought the future into focus for more than 1,000 area students as part of its recent career expo, JA Inspire. This event occurred on January 21, 2025, in the Charlotte Harbor Event and Conference Center and was hosted in partnership with the Charlotte County Government, Charlotte County School District, and FutureMakers Coalition.
Tuesday, 14 Jan 2025 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida (JA) announces Timothy Cartwright, Partner and Co-Founder at Fifth Avenue Family Office; William Price, Jr., Board Chairman, and Matthew Price, Chief Executive Officer, both with Seagate Development Group; and Aysegul Timur, Ph.D., President of Florida Gulf Coast University, are to be inducted into the JA Business Hall of Fame on Tuesday, March 25, 2025 at 5:30 p.m. at the Naples Grande Beach Resort. The prestigious event honors influential, visionary leaders and organizations that have significantly impacted the educational landscape for local youth regarding entrepreneurship, work readiness, and financial literacy in Southwest Florida.
Tuesday, 07 Jan 2025 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida gratefully announces a charitable gift of $15,000 from the Suncoast Credit Union Foundation. These funds will support the JA Inspire program, a career expo aimed at introducing students to diverse job opportunities for the future. This initiative is designed to provide middle and high school students with hands-on learning experiences across various career paths in Southwest Florida. The primary objective of JA Inspire is to spark enthusiasm in young minds while also addressing the workforce needs in our rapidly growing region.
Thursday, 02 Jan 2025 | JA USA
Recently, The UPS Store, Inc. announced a donation of $2.9 million to Junior Achievement USA through its Start Small, Grow Big program – an initiative designed to support aspiring small business owners and entrepreneurs. Locally, the Junior Achievement of SWFL received $15,427.90 from that donation to support programs for entrepreneurial programs in high school.
Monday, 09 Dec 2024 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida proudly announces it has received a $40,000 grant from the Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation to help prepare middle and high school students in the region for the workforce. The foundation has generously supported Junior Achievement’s efforts with annual grants for the past eight years.
Tuesday, 19 Nov 2024 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida, in collaboration with LARC, Goodwill Industries of Southwest Florida, Buckingham Exceptional Student Center, and Lee County School District, hosted the JA Inspire Too career expo for exceptional students at the Buckingham Exceptional Student Center on Wednesday, November 6, 2024. This event invited students with disabilities from Lee County High Schools to participate in a hands-on experience that introduced those in attendance to various careers and opportunities available in the future.
Thursday, 07 Nov 2024 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida announces its inclusion in the Target Circle Community Giving Program at local Target stores in the Sarasota to Fort Myers, Florida area and online now through the end of the year.
Tuesday, 22 Oct 2024 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida is pleased to announce it has been awarded a $5,000 grant from the Collier Community Foundation to support the 2-5-8-Graduate initiative. This funding will enhance Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida’s educational programs for Lee and Collier County students, focusing on second, fifth, eighth, and eleventh graders.
Tuesday, 01 Oct 2024 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida is pleased to announce it has received a $5,000 grant from the Collier Community Foundation. These funds will support capacity building, which will help improve Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida’s operational capacity, ensure it has the tools to operate successfully, and enhance and expand educational programming.
Thursday, 08 Aug 2024 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida announces the incoming 2024-2025 board of directors.
Wednesday, 17 Jul 2024 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida announces a record-breaking year in its 2023-2024 impact results, with a 122.9% increase in the number of students supported compared to the previous year.
Monday, 15 Jul 2024 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida proudly announces its selection as a recipient of the prestigious Paul Purcell “Kids Win!” Annual Baird Education Grant. This $50,000 grant will support Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida’s comprehensive K-12 educational programs to foster financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and workforce readiness among local students.
Thursday, 13 Jun 2024 | JA USA
Bank of America awarded $10,000 to Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida (JA) to support workforce development programs and career expos, including JA Inspire, JA Inspire To Hire, and more.
Thursday, 25 Apr 2024 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida (JA) recently hosted its second annual in-person JA Inspire career expo at Florida Gulf Coast Universitys Alico Arena. Previously hosted as a virtual event, this expo has proven successful with students, providing nearly six thousand eighth and tenth-grade students from Lee County with hands-on learning opportunities across various career paths in Southwest Florida. The primary objective was to spark enthusiasm in young minds and address the workforce demands of our rapidly expanding industries.
Thursday, 04 Apr 2024 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida recently hosted its 36th annual Business Hall of Fame event honoring and recognizing business leaders in Southwest Florida with a gala at the Naples Grande Beach Resort. Three new Laureates were celebrated and $398,000 was raised.
Thursday, 29 Feb 2024 | JA USA
Funding Supports Junior Achievement Financial Literacy, Work Readiness, and Entrepreneurial-focused Learning Experiences for Youth
Wednesday, 28 Feb 2024 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida's annual Business Hall of Fame will take place Thursday, March 28, at 5:30 p.m., at the Naples Grande Beach Resort. This event will celebrate the induction of three local laureates who support Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida's mission.
Tuesday, 30 Jan 2024 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida, in collaboration with partners, proudly hosted the inaugural JA Inspire Too career expo for exceptional students on Wednesday, January 17, 2024, at the Buckingham Exceptional Student Center.
Tuesday, 09 Jan 2024 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida announces the three individuals to be inducted into the 2024 Business Hall of Fame
Friday, 04 Aug 2023 | JA USA
Junior Achievement names Board of Directors for 2023-24
Diverse group of experts to foster youth success
Thursday, 11 May 2023 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida (JA) recently held the largest ever career expo in Southwest Florida. Nearly ten thousand eighth grade students from Lee and Collier Counties participated in the JA Inspire program and thousands attended the three-day event held at Alico Arena on the campus of Florida Gulf Coast University.
Thursday, 11 May 2023 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida (JA) recently celebrated 35 years of honoring and recognizing business leaders in Southwest Florida with a record-breaking gala at the Ritz-Carlton in Naples. On Tuesday, April 18, over 400 business leaders gathered to induct 2023 Laureates JoAnn Elardo, founder of Cape Spirits Inc., Thomas M. Moran AIF® Chairman, CEO, and CIO of Moran Wealth Management®, and Mark Stevens, President of Stevens Construction, into the JA Business Hall of Fame.
This years event, chaired by Stacey Herring of Morgan Stanley Private Bank and Laureate Chair Michael Wynn of Sunshine Ace Hardware, raised $213,000 to support local JA programs that teach students the importance of financial literacy, career and work readiness and entrepreneurship.
Friday, 17 Mar 2023 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida is one of five local JA operations across the country participating in a partnership with Synovus Bank.
Synovus recently contributed $250,000 to Junior Achievement USA through its Here Matters Community Fund
Friday, 03 Mar 2023 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida (JA) recently announced that its 2023 Hall of Fame Advisory Board will be led by Event Chair Stacey L. Herring, First Vice President, Morgan Stanley Private Bank, and Laureate Chair Michael Wynn, President, Sunshine Ace Hardware.
Monday, 20 Feb 2023 | JA USA
Distinguished award recognizes influential, visionary business leaders within SWFL
Friday, 03 Feb 2023 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida, in partnership with donors, recently provided school supplies to more than 700 young learners in need throughout several Southwest Florida schools.
Wednesday, 21 Dec 2022 | JA USA
Grant supports career readiness and mentoring for Cape Coral students
Thursday, 03 Nov 2022 | JA USA
Grant furthers career readiness programs for Southwest Florida students
Southwest Floridas middle and high school students will be better prepared to transition into the working world thanks to the work of Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida (JA) and a $40,000 Workforce Development grant the organization received from the Richard M. Schulze Family Foundation. The foundation has generously supported the efforts of JA with annual grants for six consecutive years
Friday, 21 Oct 2022 | JA USA
Junior Achievement of Southwest Florida (JA) is asking for donations of school supplies to help replenish items needed as Southwest Florida students and teachers impacted by Hurricane Ian return to class. Donations of brand-new items can be made at 13241 University Drive, Suite 102, in Fort Myers, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., now until Dec.1.
