Future of Miami Business: Student CEOs Vie for Top JA Honors

MIAMI, FL – April 10, 2026 – As Financial Literacy Month highlights the importance of economic education, Miami is preparing to witness the culmination of its largest-ever youth entrepreneurship initiative. On April 14, at Miami-Dade College, Junior Achievement of Greater Miami will host its 4th Annual JA Company Program Competition, where the county’s brightest high school students will step out of the classroom and into the boardroom.

This year, the program shattered previous records, with 2,054 students across 20 Miami-Dade schools launching a total of 70 real, operational companies. After months of hard work, the field has been narrowed to 10 elite teams from six different high schools. These young executives will pitch their business concepts, performance, and lessons learned to a panel of judges composed of JA Miami board members, seasoned local entrepreneurs, and community leaders. At stake is a $400 prize for each member of the winning team and a coveted recommendation to compete at the Junior Achievement USA national competition this summer.

From Classroom Concepts to Boardroom Pitches

The JA Company Program is a masterclass in experiential learning, moving far beyond textbook theory. Participants are immersed in the entire lifecycle of a business venture. Guided by mentors from the local business community, students collaboratively conceptualize a product or service, conduct market research, draft a business plan, and secure startup capital. They then move into production, creating prototypes, managing budgets, and executing marketing and sales strategies.

"This program represents so many exciting parts of the JA Miami program: it's a great lesson for students in entrepreneurship and innovation, and it connects them with local mentors and business leaders," said Lourdes de la Mata Little, Junior Achievement Miami President and CEO. "This is a fantastic way for students to learn real-world skills, while we build a talent pipeline for the Miami tech and innovation community."

The journey culminates in the liquidation of their companies and the creation of a comprehensive profit-loss statement, providing a tangible measure of their success. This hands-on process equips students with invaluable practical skills in finance, management, and collaboration. The high-stakes final competition serves as a powerful capstone experience, mirroring the pressures and opportunities of a real-world investment pitch.

The caliber of Miami's young entrepreneurs has already been proven on the national stage. Last year, two local teams earned spots at the national Future Bound Summit. A team from Coral Gables Senior High School was lauded with the prestigious ICE Best Financial Performance Award, while a team from Dr. Michael M. Krop Senior High School captured the Student Choice Award, demonstrating both financial acumen and peer-recognized innovation.

Fueling Miami's Economic Engine

The JA Company Program is more than an academic exercise; it's a strategic investment in Miami's economic future. The initiative is a cornerstone of a broader effort to cultivate a homegrown talent pipeline for the city's burgeoning tech and innovation sectors. This vision is supported by a powerful collaboration between education, non-profit, and corporate sectors.

A key element is the formal "Partnership for Success" between JA Miami and Miami-Dade County Public Schools (MDCPS), the nation's third-largest school district. This initiative, backed by a three-year grant, aims to systematically integrate financial literacy and entrepreneurship education into the K-12 curriculum, ensuring that students, many from low-income backgrounds, have access to skills for economic self-sufficiency.

The competition's keynote speaker, Ivan Soto-Wright, exemplifies the synergy between Miami's established business leaders and its next generation of innovators. As the CEO and Founder of fintech giant MoonPay and the Soto-Wright Foundation, as well as a JA Miami board member, his involvement underscores the tech industry's commitment to fostering youth entrepreneurship. His presence, along with a speech from Lourdes Diaz, Chief Academic Officer of MDCPS, signals a unified front in preparing students for the demands of the modern economy.

A National Model for Experiential Education

As the nation increasingly recognizes the necessity of financial education, JA Miami's program stands out as a leading model. A growing movement has seen 35 states mandate personal finance courses for high school graduation, with polls showing overwhelming public support for such requirements. However, experts agree that the most effective education is not passive, but active.

The JA Company Program directly addresses this need, offering a solution to the challenges of traditional education, which can struggle to provide practical, real-world context. By allowing students to build, run, and dissolve a real business, the program bridges the critical gap between theoretical knowledge and practical application. This hands-on approach cultivates not just business skills, but also an entrepreneurial mindset characterized by resilience, creativity, and problem-solving.

JA Miami's success has not gone unnoticed. Its Company Program is one of the largest and most respected in the United States, serving as a blueprint for other JA chapters nationwide. The local organization's excellence was recently recognized with the coveted Five Star Status from JA USA for the 2023-2024 period and a 2024 NOVO Award from the Miami Chamber of Commerce.

Serving over 38,000 students annually in Miami-Dade and Monroe Counties, Junior Achievement of Greater Miami provides free, volunteer-led lessons that empower young people. The upcoming competition is the public face of this deep, year-round commitment to building a more prosperous and equitable future. The event on April 14th is not just a showcase of student achievement, but a vibrant demonstration of a community investing in its next generation of leaders and innovators.