Empowering Providence Teens Through Entrepreneurship

Strategic Insights -

Since its inception, the Young Entrepreneurs of Providence (YEP) program has been helping local high school students develop entrepreneurial skills and build ventures that address community challenges. The program, led by Brown University undergraduates, has a unique approach that starts with introducing students to the fundamentals of entrepreneurship, from identifying problems to solving them, to design thinking and research methods. By providing a supportive community and hands-on learning experience, YEP inspires local students to work towards lives and careers of innovation and impact.

Key Takeaways:

  • The Young Entrepreneurs of Providence (YEP) program has been empowering local high school students to build ventures that address community challenges since 2019, with over 200 Rhode Island students participating from more than a dozen public schools.
  • The program teaches students the fundamentals of entrepreneurship, including identifying problems, design thinking, and research methods, as well as business models, fundraising, and branding.
  • YEP has mentored students to launch successful ventures, including a tutoring startup, a cosmetics business, and an e-commerce business.
  • The program's leadership team includes Brown undergraduate Lana Nguyen, who said, "We show representations of women and people of color as entrepreneurs because we want young students to see that it is possible, and that entrepreneurship is a way that people can transform areas of need and use resources available to create a solution to a problem."
  • Aliya Viamontes, a student at William M. Davies Career and Technical High School, pitched her venture Climb, an app that aggregates resources and support for people aiming to curtail drug use. She said, "On the first day of YEP, I didn't feel as though I was a person that had influence or power in my community to address a problem or attempt to change it, but now I feel like I do have the ability to help people and contribute to my community."
  • Anna Deng, an East Greenwich High School student, said the program made her think about her entrepreneurial aspirations as an achievable goal, and now she's more confident in herself and her ideas.
  • The program features guest speakers, including successful entrepreneurs and local youth program leaders, and has increased outreach to more schools and communities in Rhode Island.
  • YEP has expanded to new chapters at Yale University and the University of California, Berkeley, with plans to further grow the program in Rhode Island by increasing outreach to more schools and communities.

Statistics:

  • Over 200 Rhode Island students have participated in YEP since its inception in 2019.
  • More than 100 members of the Brown and Providence communities attended the Pitch Night event to support local students pitching their business ideas.
  • Roughly 30 Brown students led the YEP program this fall as teachers and mentors.
  • 7 ventures were presented at the fall's Pitch Night, each aiming to tackle a community issue, including improving access to public transportation, addressing food waste reduction and recovery, and creating culturally inclusive, equitable learning environments.

Sources:

  • Brown University:

* "A semester-long after-school program led by Brown undergraduates at the Nelson Center for Entrepreneurship inspires Providence-area teens to build ventures that help to solve community challenges."

* "In a test of their newfound business acumen, two dozen Providence-area high school students commanded the Liz Lange Lecture Hall at Brown's Nelson Center for Entrepreneurship on a mid-November evening."

* "The Young Entrepreneurs of Providence program is a semester-long after-school program that teaches local teens the fundamentals of entrepreneurship."

* "Created and led by Brown undergraduates and supported by the Nelson Center, the bi-annual incubator empowers local high schoolers to develop and test their own pursuits."

* "The bi-annual incubator empowers local high schoolers to develop and test their own pursuits."

* "The program has mentored more than 200 Rhode Island students from more than a dozen local public schools."

* "Some alums have gone on to launch their ventures, including a tutoring startup and a cosmetics business, while others are now studying business and entrepreneurship as college students."

  • Nick Dentamaro/Brown University.

* Photo of Nick Dentamaro/Brown University: "Young Entrepreneurs of Providence."

* Photo of Nick Dentamaro/Brown University: "Students Aliya Viamontes, Joe Samayoa, and Lauren Reikhrud pitched their venture - Climb, an app that aggregates resources and support for people aiming to curtail drug use."

  • The Atlantic.