LaunchPad Youth Business Academy

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Executive Summary

LaunchPad Youth Business Academy is a nonprofit in Ohio that teaches teenagers how to start and run a small business. Through after-school Founders Clubs at partner schools, a summer Teen Business Camp, volunteer business mentors and small seed grants, students ages 13 to 18 turn an idea into a real product or service, make their first sales at community Market Days and learn how to handle the money they earn.

Many of the young people we serve have talent, energy and ideas, but few have ever met a business owner, written a price list or opened a savings account. Most schools do not have room in the school day to teach these skills. Our program fills that gap with hands-on lessons, caring adults and a real chance to try.

With this grant we will run 12-week Founders Clubs at three partner schools in the fall and again in the spring (about 20 students in each club), plus a summer camp for about 30 students. That is about 150 students in Year 1. Every student who finishes writes a one-page business plan, pitches it to a panel of local business owners and has the chance to sell at a Market Day. About 80 student businesses will receive a seed grant of up to $250 to buy their first supplies.

Our Year 1 budget is about $193,000, growing to about $248,000 by Year 5 as we add schools. Each year's budget is planned to balance, with a small surplus each year. We have 3 paid staff in Year 1 (two full-time and one part-time) and 4 by Year 3, supported by about 25 volunteer mentors.

We are asking the Northbridge Community Foundation for $60,000 for our Program Director and Lead Instructor and for student seed grants. Partner schools pay a small fee, and local businesses and donors give as well, so this grant is one part of a shared funding plan.

I am Marcus Bell, the Executive Director. The numbers in this proposal are estimates based on the assumptions listed at the end, not promises.

Company Description

LaunchPad Youth Business Academy is a nonprofit organization in Ohio. We are a 501(c)(3) public charity (or a program of one, through a fiscal sponsor), governed by a volunteer board of directors. We will provide our IRS determination letter, board list and most recent financial statements with this proposal.

Our mission. To help young people discover what they can build, by teaching them to start a business, manage money and believe in their own ideas.

What we believe. Every young person has something worth building. Students learn best by doing, not by being told. A first sale, even a small one, can change how a teenager sees their future.

How we started. LaunchPad began as a weekend workshop led by a few local business owners at a community center. Students sold handmade items, baked goods and services like lawn care and phone case design, and many came back asking for more. Parents and school counselors asked whether we could offer a full program during the school year. This proposal asks for support to run that program across three schools, with a summer camp, for a full year.

What we offer:
- Founders Clubs. A 12-week after-school course that meets twice a week at each partner school. Students learn to pick an idea, talk to customers, figure out costs and set prices, make a product or plan a service, market it and keep simple records.
- Teen Business Camp. A 4-week summer camp, four days a week, for students who want a deeper start or could not join during the school year.
- Volunteer mentors. Local business owners who meet with student teams during club time and help them prepare for Pitch Night.
- Seed grants. Up to $250 per student business to buy first supplies, paid to the supplier or reimbursed with a receipt, never handed out as cash.
- Market Days. Twice a year, students sell their products and services at a community market we organize with a partner church and the public library.
- Money skills. Every student learns about profit, saving, banking and taxes in plain words, and students can open a youth savings account with a partner credit union, with a parent's permission.

How we are run. A seven-member volunteer board of directors oversees the organization and approves the budget each year. The board includes two business owners, a high school teacher, a credit union manager, a parent of a former student and a person with nonprofit finance experience. The Executive Director leads fundraising and partnerships, the Program Director runs the clubs and camp, and an outside accountant reviews our books every year.

Where things stand today. We have signed letters of interest from three schools, a partner church and the public library. Before the fall clubs begin, we will sign a short partnership agreement with each school that covers space, schedule, student safety and the partner fee, and we will survey students at each school about the kinds of businesses they want to try.

Problem & Opportunity

Why this program is needed.

Many teenagers in our community have strong ideas and real skills. They braid hair, fix bikes, design graphics, bake, cut grass and sell sneakers online. Very few have ever been shown how to turn those skills into a small business, how to price their work or what to do with the money they earn. Schools are under pressure to cover required subjects, so there is little time left in the day for this kind of hands-on learning.

The gaps we see:
1. No one to learn from. Many students do not know a business owner personally and have never seen how a business really runs.
2. No money to start. Even a small business needs a few hundred dollars for supplies, and most students do not have it. Without a small start, a good idea stays an idea.
3. Money skills are missing. Many students have never made a budget, opened a bank account or learned what profit means. These skills matter whether or not a student ever owns a business.
4. Little chance to practice. Classroom lessons rarely include a real customer. Selling something to a stranger and getting paid builds confidence in a way a worksheet cannot.
5. Summer and after-school hours go unused. Teens who are not in a structured program after school or in summer miss a safe place to grow.

How we know students want this. In our weekend workshops last year, 46 students took part and 31 asked to join a longer program. School counselors at all three partner schools have asked for an after-school option that teaches career and money skills. Before we submit this proposal, we will add two local facts that funders often ask for: the share of students at each partner school who qualify for free or reduced-price meals (from the state education department's school report cards) and the youth unemployment rate for our county (from the state labor department).

What we will check. In the first two weeks of each club, students will complete a short survey about their goals and a money skills quiz. We will repeat the quiz at the end, so we can show what students learned.

Who benefits first. Students ages 13 to 18 at our three partner schools, especially students from families with limited income, students who are not yet involved in any after-school activity, and students a counselor believes would benefit from a positive, hands-on program.

Products & Services

What the grant will pay for and what we will do.

1. Recruit students at each partner school. Counselors, teachers and coaches refer students, and every student can sign up with a parent's permission. We hold an information session at each school, with past students sharing what they built. Each club holds about 20 students.

2. Teach the 12-week Founders Club. Clubs meet twice a week for 90 minutes after school, with a snack. The course follows the same path at every school:
- Weeks 1 and 2: Finding an idea. What are you good at, what do people around you need, and what could you sell?
- Weeks 3 and 4: Talking to customers. Students interview at least ten people about their idea and change it based on what they hear.
- Weeks 5 and 6: Costs and prices. Students list every cost, set a price and learn what profit is. Each student fills in a one-page cost and price sheet.
- Weeks 7 and 8: Making it real. Students build a first batch of their product, or plan exactly how their service will work.
- Week 9: Marketing. A simple name, a sign, a flyer and, with parent permission, a safe way to tell people about it.
- Week 10: Money. Saving, banking, keeping records and what taxes are, in plain words. Students may open a youth savings account with a parent.
- Weeks 11 and 12: The one-page business plan and Pitch Night. Students present to a panel of local business owners and their families.

3. Run the summer Teen Business Camp. Four weeks, four days a week, for about 30 students. Camp follows the same lessons at a faster pace and ends with a summer Market Day.

4. Match students with mentors. About 25 volunteer business owners visit clubs during work time. Each team meets with a mentor at least four times during the 12 weeks.

5. Award seed grants. After Pitch Night, students who finish the club and present a plan can receive a seed grant of up to $250 to buy first supplies. We pay suppliers directly or reimburse with a receipt, so the money goes only to the business. About 80 seed grants are planned in Year 1.

6. Hold two Market Days a year. Students sell to the public at a community market. Students keep the money they earn. We teach them to set aside part of it to restock and part to save.

How we will measure results. For every club and camp we will count students who enroll, students who finish, one-page business plans written, pitches given, seed grants awarded, students who make at least one sale and youth savings accounts opened. Every student takes the same money skills quiz at the start and end. We ask every student and parent for feedback, and we check in with students at 6 and 12 months to see whether they are still running their business, have a job or have joined another program.

Our Year 1 goals:
- About 150 students enrolled (120 in Founders Clubs and 30 in camp).
- At least 80% finish (about 120 students).
- About 100 pitches and about 80 seed grants awarded.
- At least 70 students make a sale at a Market Day or to their own customers.
- An average gain of at least 20 points on the money skills quiz.
These are goals, and we will report our real results to the Foundation, including where we fall short.

Market Analysis

Who we serve and how many.

The students. Young people ages 13 to 18 (grades 8 to 12) at our partner schools. We welcome every student, and we reach out especially to students from families with limited income, students not yet involved in any after-school activity and students referred by a counselor.

Where we work. Three partner schools in Year 1: two high schools and one middle school serving grade 8. Our summer camp is held at the public library's community room and is open to students from any school in the county.

How many we will reach:
- Year 1: three schools, with a fall and a spring club at each (about 120 students), plus 30 at camp, for about 150 students.
- Year 2: four schools, about 190 students.
- Year 3: five schools and a second full-time instructor, about 240 students.
- Years 4 and 5: six schools, about 280 students a year.
Over five years we expect to serve about 1,140 students.

Who else benefits:
- Families. Parents see their children set goals, earn money and talk about the future. Many parents attend Pitch Night and Market Day.
- Partner schools. Schools gain a program that builds attendance, engagement and career skills, without adding work for teachers.
- Local businesses. Mentors and judges meet young people who could become future employees, customers or partners.
- The community. Market Days bring neighbors together and keep spending local.

How we will size the need before we submit. We will add the number of students at each partner school, the share who qualify for free or reduced-price meals and the county youth unemployment rate. These numbers come from public sources: the state education department's school report cards and the state labor department.

Competitive Landscape

Other programs young people can join, and how we fit.

- School business classes and career clubs. Some high schools offer a business elective or a national career club. These are valuable, but they are often full, may require a class schedule spot and rarely include seed money or a real market. We invite these teachers to serve as judges and refer students to each other.
- National youth entrepreneurship programs. Several national organizations offer curricula and competitions. They have strong materials, but many depend on a teacher already in the building to run them. We bring the instructor, the mentors and the seed money.
- Youth job programs. Summer job programs give teens paid work experience. We see these as partners: some students want a job, and some want to build their own thing. We refer students both ways.
- Online courses and videos. Free and flexible, but without a mentor, a team, a real customer or someone to answer questions.
- Small Business Development Centers and SCORE. These offer excellent free help for adults starting a business. We invite their advisors to mentor, and we connect older students who are serious about a business to them after graduation.

The gap we fill. In our county, no program combines after-school lessons, a mentor, seed money and a real place to sell, at no cost to the student. That full path, from idea to first sale, is what makes LaunchPad different.

Our partners:
- Three partner schools, which provide space, refer students and pay a small yearly partner fee.
- A partner church and the public library, which host Market Days and summer camp at no cost.
- A local credit union, which teaches the banking lesson and offers youth savings accounts.
- The local Small Business Development Center, which trains our mentors and advises older students.
- The chamber of commerce, which recruits mentors and Pitch Night judges.

Marketing & Sales Strategy

How students will find us and how we keep them engaged.

Reaching students:
- School referrals. Counselors, teachers and coaches refer students who could benefit. Each partner school names one staff contact.
- Information sessions. Before each club, we hold a short session at the school during lunch, where past students show what they built.
- Word of mouth. Our best recruiters are students who have been through the program. At each Market Day we invite friends and siblings to sign up.
- Parents and families. Flyers go home in school folders, and we present at parent nights and family events. Every form is available in English and Spanish.
- Community partners. The library, churches, youth centers and the credit union share our flyers.
- A simple website and social media posts with photos of Market Days and Pitch Nights, shared only with signed photo permission.

Keeping students engaged:
- Clubs meet right after school, in the same building, with a snack, so getting there is easy.
- Students work in teams, so friends keep each other coming.
- Pitch Night and Market Day give every student a clear goal and a date to work toward.
- If a student misses two meetings in a row, the coordinator calls home and the mentor checks in.
- For summer camp, we offer bus passes for students who need a ride.

Reaching mentors and supporters. The chamber of commerce and the Small Business Development Center help us recruit mentors. Local businesses are invited to sponsor a Market Day, a seed grant or a school club. Every sponsor receives a thank-you and a short report on what students built.

Marketing budget. Outreach and evaluation together are about $6,000 a year in Year 1, growing about 4% a year. Printed flyers, banners and the website are paid for once from startup money ($1,500).

Operations Plan

How the program will be carried out.

Timeline for Year 1:
- Months 1 and 2 (summer): Sign partnership agreements with three schools, recruit and train mentors, buy laptops and supplies, finalize the course and the money skills quiz, and set Market Day dates.
- Month 3 (late summer): Information sessions at each school and the first sign-ups.
- Months 3 to 5: Fall Founders Clubs at all three schools, ending with a fall Pitch Night.
- Month 6: Award fall seed grants and hold the winter Market Day.
- Months 7 to 9: Spring Founders Clubs, ending with a spring Pitch Night.
- Month 10: Award spring seed grants and hold the spring Market Day.
- Months 11 and 12: Teen Business Camp and the summer Market Day, then 6-month follow-up with fall students, a year-end report to funders and planning for Year 2.

Space. Clubs meet in a classroom at each partner school after the school day ends, at no cost under our partnership agreement. Summer camp is held at the public library's community room. Market Days are held in a partner church's parking lot and fellowship hall. Our small office is shared space at the church.

Equipment. We buy about $9,000 of equipment once at the start: twelve student laptops with a charging cart ($5,400), two booth kits for Market Day with tents, tables and card readers ($2,200), a projector, screen and speaker ($800), and a locking storage cabinet with bins ($600). The laptops travel between schools in the cart. After Year 1, we set aside about $1,500 to $2,000 a year to replace and add equipment.

Supplies. Each student receives a workbook and a starter kit. Curriculum, supplies and Market Day costs are about $14,000 a year in Year 1. Snacks and student transportation, including bus passes for summer camp, are about $9,000.

Student safety. Every staff member and mentor passes a background check before working with students, where the law allows. Mentors are never alone with a student; two adults are always present. We collect a signed parent permission form, emergency contacts and a photo permission form for every student. Staff do not contact students through personal social media. Students only sell online or post about their business with a parent's permission.

Rules for young sellers. Rules for minors selling products, food safety and sales tax vary by state and city. Before each Market Day, we confirm with the city whether we need a special event permit, and we follow the county health department's rules for any food. At the start, students may sell only prepackaged food or food allowed under the local health rules, and no student may sell anything unsafe, age-restricted or copied from another brand. Students who plan to keep running a business after the program are shown how to check with the city about a business license and, with a parent, about taxes.

Seed grant controls. Seed grants are paid to suppliers or reimbursed with a receipt, never given as cash. Each grant is approved by the Program Director and recorded, and the board reviews a list of all grants each quarter.

Records and reporting. Student information is kept private and shared with funders only as totals. Grant money is tracked separately so we can show each funder how their money was spent, and an outside accountant reviews our books every year.

Management & Organization

Who leads the organization.

Marcus Bell, Executive Director. Marcus leads the organization, raises money, manages grants and partnerships, and reports to the board. He has run a small screen printing business for nine years and has volunteered with youth programs for over a decade. Planned salary: $56,000 a year.

Program Director and Lead Instructor. Leads the course at every school, trains mentors, oversees seed grants and Market Days, and tracks results. This role requires classroom or youth program experience and a background check. Planned salary: $46,000 a year. This is the position the Northbridge Community Foundation grant would support.

Youth Program Instructor. Added in Year 3 so we can run clubs at more schools. Teaches clubs and camp alongside the Program Director. Planned salary: $40,000 a year.

Program Coordinator (part-time). Handles sign-ups, parent forms, attendance, snacks, supplies and calls home, about 25 hours a week. Planned pay: $22,000 a year.

Pay figures include payroll taxes and workers' compensation insurance.

Staff in each year: 3 paid staff in Years 1 and 2 (two full-time and one part-time), and 4 from Year 3 on.

Volunteers. About 25 volunteer business mentors in Year 1, recruited with the chamber of commerce and trained by our Program Director and the Small Business Development Center. Pitch Night judges and Market Day helpers add about 20 more volunteers a year.

The board. A seven-member volunteer board approves the budget, reviews results twice a year and helps raise money. Board members serve three-year terms.

People who help us. An outside accountant who reviews our books every year, an insurance agent who understands youth programs, an attorney who reviews our partnership agreements once, and the credit union, which teaches our banking lesson.

Money management. Grant money is tracked separately for each funder. The Executive Director and a board member must both approve any payment over $2,500.

Milestones Narrative

Our goals for each year and how we will measure them.

- Year 1: Run Founders Clubs at three schools in the fall and spring, plus summer camp, serving about 150 students. Award about 80 seed grants and hold three Market Days. A balanced budget of about $193,000, with a small surplus of about $5,200. 3 paid staff.
- Year 2: Add a fourth school and serve about 190 students. Begin 12-month follow-up with Year 1 students and grow our donor list. A balanced budget of about $197,000, with a small surplus of about $5,800. 3 paid staff.
- Year 3: Add a fifth school and a second full-time instructor, serving about 240 students. A balanced budget of about $241,000, with a small surplus of about $6,100. 4 paid staff.
- Year 4: Add a sixth school and serve about 280 students. Invite past students back as junior mentors. A balanced budget of about $244,500, with a small surplus of about $5,900. 4 paid staff.
- Year 5: Run a steady six-school program serving about 280 students a year and share our course with other youth groups. A balanced budget of about $248,000, with a small surplus of about $5,400. 4 paid staff.

What we measure for every club and camp:
- Students enrolled and students who finish.
- One-page business plans written and pitches given.
- Seed grants awarded and how the money was spent.
- Students who make at least one sale.
- Money skills quiz scores at the start and end.
- Youth savings accounts opened.
- At 6 and 12 months: students still running their business, working a job or in another program.

How we review results. The Program Director reviews attendance every week. Twice a year, staff and the board review all results and share them with our funders and partner schools. If a school's club has low attendance or low completion, we meet with the school contact and change the schedule or recruiting. Every number in this plan is a goal, and we will report what really happens.

Funding Request

What we are asking for, and how the money will be used. Our request: $60,000 from the Northbridge Community Foundation for our Program Director and Lead Instructor and for student seed grants, for August 2027 through July 2028.

The request is spread across these budget lines:
- Personnel: Program Director and Lead Instructor salary, $46,000.
- Other: Student seed grants, $14,000 (other funds add $6,000).

Other money in the program. Other grants, school partner fees, donations and business sponsors pay the other $6,000 of seed grants, plus the Executive Director's salary ($56,000), the part-time Program Coordinator ($22,000), curriculum, supplies and Market Days ($14,000), snacks and student transportation ($9,000), outreach and evaluation ($6,000) and administration and insurance ($13,000).

Year 1 budget: about $193,000, planned to balance with a small surplus (about $5,200 after the yearly wear on equipment). Year 1 money coming in: grants $150,000 (this request plus other grants we are applying for), school partner fees $18,000 (three schools at $6,000 each) and donations and business sponsors $25,000. Year 1 costs: Executive Director $56,000; Program Director and Lead Instructor $46,000; Program Coordinator $22,000; student seed grants about $20,000; curriculum, supplies and Market Days about $14,000; snacks and student transportation about $9,000; outreach and evaluation about $6,000; administration and insurance about $13,000; and about $3,200 a year for the wear on equipment.

One-time startup costs. Startup costs of $15,500 are paid once from startup money, not from the yearly budget: $9,000 of equipment (laptops and a charging cart, Market Day booth kits, a projector and a storage cabinet), $2,500 for the first workbooks and student starter kits, $1,500 for accounting setup and a review of school agreements, $1,500 for banners, a website and flyers, and $1,000 for the first mentor background checks and insurance payment.

How we got our startup number. The Funding Need Calculator in this plan adds the startup costs ($15,500) and a cash cushion of about $46,500, which is about three months of Year 1 costs. That comes to $62,000. We start with $18,000 of our own savings and $55,000 in startup support from a local family foundation and our board, $73,000 in all, which covers that amount with room to spare.

The next five years. Our budget grows from about $193,000 in Year 1 to about $248,000 in Year 5. Grants are planned at $150,000, $145,000, $171,000, $162,500 and $158,000 in Years 1 to 5. School partner fees grow from $18,000 to $36,000 as we add schools, and donations and business sponsors grow from $25,000 to $54,000. We add a second full-time instructor in Year 3. Grants fall from about 78% of our income in Year 1 to about 64% in Year 5.

Savings. We plan to keep several months of costs in savings. The lowest year-end balance in the plan is about $65,200, at the end of Year 1. Some grant payments and school fees arrive after we bill, so we plan for about $5,790 owed to us at the end of Year 1.

After the grant. School partner fees, business sponsors and individual donors grow every year, so grants become a smaller share of our budget. Past students return as junior mentors, local businesses sponsor seed grants by name, and every Market Day is a chance to meet new donors.

Risks and how we will handle them:
- Not enough students sign up. We start recruiting early with school staff and past students, and we can move club days or times.
- Students stop coming. The coordinator calls home after two missed meetings, and mentors and teammates help students stay connected.
- A partner school leaves. We keep a waiting list of schools that have asked for a club.
- Seed grant money is misused. Grants are paid to suppliers or reimbursed with receipts, never as cash.
- A grant ends. We keep savings and grow sponsors and partner fees each year.

If you are just starting. A new organization can begin before it has its own 501(c)(3) status through a fiscal sponsor: an established nonprofit that receives grants for you and passes them to your program, usually for a fee (commonly around 5% to 10% of the grant, sometimes more; ask before you agree). Another way is to start smaller: one Founders Club at one school with volunteer instructors and a few donated laptops, tracked carefully. Strong results from a small start make larger grants easier to win.

Appendix Notes

Documents to attach with this proposal:

- Your IRS 501(c)(3) determination letter, or your fiscal sponsor agreement.
- Your most recent financial statements and your current year budget.
- A list of your board members and what each one does.
- Signed letters of support or partnership agreements from each partner school.
- Letters of support from the library, partner church, credit union and chamber of commerce.
- Your 12-week course outline and a sample club schedule.
- Your student safety policy, background check policy and parent permission form.
- Your seed grant rules and the form students use to request supplies.
- Resumes for your Executive Director and Program Director.
If you don't have any of this yet, no worries - let's continue.

The assumptions behind our numbers (change them in the Financials section to match your own):
- Grant Revenue: $150,000 in Year 1, then $145,000, $171,000, $162,500 and $158,000.
- School Partner Fees: $6,000 per school each year; $18,000 in Year 1 (three schools), growing to $36,000 (six schools).
- Donations and Business Sponsors: $25,000 in Year 1, growing to $54,000.
- Pay (a full year, per person, including payroll taxes and workers' compensation): Executive Director $56,000, Program Director and Lead Instructor $46,000, Youth Program Instructor $40,000 (from Year 3), Program Coordinator (part-time) $22,000.
- Other yearly costs in Year 1: Student Seed Grants $20,000, Curriculum, Supplies and Market Days $14,000, Snacks and Student Transportation $9,000, Outreach and Evaluation $6,000, Administration and Insurance $13,000. These grow between 4% and 6% a year.
- Equipment: $9,000 at the start, then $1,500 to $2,000 a year.
- Startup costs: $15,500, paid once from $73,000 in startup money.
- About 3% of each year's income is still owed to us at year end.
- Tax: none, as a nonprofit.
- Every dollar amount is an estimate. Replace them with your own quotes and real budget.

Startup Costs