CHICAGO, May 21, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Alex Van Atta was named Volunteer of the Year by the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) during their Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge Semi-Final Event in Chicago on May 15, 2019 hosted at Slalom, a modern consulting firm focused on strategy, technology, and business transformation. The award recognizes Van Atta for his work with NFTE and Slalom to help activate the entrepreneurial mindset in high school students and prepare youth from under-resourced communities to compete in today's job market. The annual award is presented at the NFTE Regional Finals; the 2019 event takes place today at 6:30 p.m. at the Shirley Ryan AbilityLab.
"NFTE believes that activating an entrepreneurial mindset in an entire generation of students will help to close the equity gap and create an unmatched talent pipeline from some of Chicago's most under-served communities," said Michelle Mirzoian, Development Director, Midwest, NFTE. "We could not do this work or bridge that gap without corporate partners like Slalom that believe that creating access to Chicago's business community is not only important for our students and communities, but also for how we do business."
As a NFTE volunteer, and a Solution Architect with Slalom Chicago, Van Atta applies his expertise in user-centered design and analytics to help students develop solid business cases and presentations for NFTE entrepreneurship competitions. He recently led a Slalom team to create an accelerated virtual coaching experience. The solution was launched on March 7, 2019 at Slalom's REALIZE event, an annual summit that brings business and community leaders together for a day of experiential learning, bold ideas, and new connections. After watching a 30-to-60 second video of a student business pitch, REALIZE attendees were able to verbally record feedback (hands-free) using natural language processing technology. Within three hours, 55 coaching sessions were recorded. The voice-to-text feedback from local business professionals was provided to NFTE students following the event to help them refine their pitch before competing in local, regional, and national NFTE competitions.
"I applaud Alex and all the NFTE volunteers for their dedication to instilling an entrepreneurial way of thinking and teaching transferable skills and behaviors that will prepare students for success in work and life," said Justin Odenbach, General Manager, Slalom Chicago. "No matter what path students choose after school, learning self-reliance, comfort with risk, innovation, communication, and problem-solving is a significant advantage when entering the workforce."
Students across the nation participate in the NFTE competition cycle in their home region. The semi-final competition at Slalom on May 15, 2019 included 12 student businesses from NFTE Chicago Metro's "Entrepreneurship 1" (introductory level) courses competing to be one of three teams advancing to the regional finals on May 21, 2019. NFTE's "Entrepreneurship 2" students also participated in the event at Slalom and were awarded $3,000 in investment funding to advance their ideas. The team awarded the largest investment is eligible for selection by a National Committee to compete in the National Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge in New York.
About Slalom
Slalom is a modern consulting firm focused on strategy, technology, and business transformation. In 28 cities across the US, UK, and Canada, Slalom's teams have autonomy to move fast and do what's right. They're backed by seven regional innovation hubs, a global culture of collaboration, and partnerships with the world's top technology providers. Founded in 2001 and headquartered in Seattle, Slalom has organically grown to over 6,500 employees. Slalom was named one of Fortune's 100 Best Companies to Work For in 2019 and is regularly recognized by employees as a best place to work. Learn more at https://www.slalom.com.
About NFTE
Since 1987, the Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE) has taught and inspired more than 600,000 young people to pursue educational opportunities, start their own businesses, and succeed in life. By providing entrepreneurship education programs relevant to the real world, NFTE empowers students to own their education and future success. NFTE has programs run through 17 U.S. program offices and in 10 countries. To learn more, visit https://www.nfte.com, like us on Facebook at facebook.com/NFTE, and follow us on Twitter at @NFTE.
SOURCE Slalom
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