Youth Entrepreneurial Challenge
The Youth Entrepreneurship Challenge program sponsored by Union Bank is designed to teach High School students the entrepreneurial mindset alongside traditional small business startup skills. Students (working in groups) will create business plans and develop a business marketing presentation (The Pitch).? Each team will compete within their home High School / Youth Center competition.
Participating High Schools include:
- Crenshaw High School
- View Park Prep High School
- Augusta Hawkins High School
- Diego? Rivera High School
- Manual Arts High
Participating Youth Serving Agencies:
- Brotherhood Crusade
- City of Los Angeles – Watts Youth Opportunity Movement
- Los Angeles Urban League
- YWCA of Greater Los Angeles
Sponsored by:
Youth Business Center
The Vermont Slauson Youth Business Center (YBC)? program is designed to utilize the basic foundation of VSEDC BusinessSource Center with the concentration of providing services for? High School students ages 14 – 18.? The goals is to assist young entrepreneurs explore their interest in pursuing a career in business and learn more about life.?? The center offers quality entrepreneurship and technology training to high school students.? The Youth Business Center provides an innovative approach to after-school programming where young people explore their own interests and become confident learners using technology.
Entrepreneurial Training
Youth Entrepreneur Academy
Technology? (Tech Start Up)
Summer Internship
School Locations
- Augustus Hawkins High School
- Diego Rivera High School
- View Park Prep High School
- Boys Academic Leadership Academy

Youth Coding Camp
Students learn to code by building custom websites.
Summer Internship Program
Due to the COVID-19 pandemic this program will resume 2021
The primary goal is to provide 40 youth with internship opportunities that will focus on the Entrepreneurial Training.? Students will be initially exposed to forty (40) hours of classroom instruction focused on personal development, effective communication, and an overview of the construction career pathways.
The second phase of the program consists of a 100-hour internship.? VSEDC will coordinate with area small businesses to provide youth with an internship focus on their business interest.? The internship will focus on specific small business core competencies.? These core competencies will be around product development, marketing, management, and pricing.
Training Component
The 40-hour entrepreneurial training will be held at Vermont Slauson Economic Development Corporation with an emphasis on preparing the interns for small business ownership through entrepreneurial workshops:
- Are you an entrepreneur
- The Big idea
- Market Research
- The 4p’s of Marketing
- Social Media
- Video marketing
- Finances
- The Business Plan
- Financial Literacy
- Coding – Web Design & Development
