A team of students at Brookville High School in Campbell County has won a top-ten spot in a national Stock Market Game of more than 4,000 teams.
Meanwhile, a team at Lynchburg’s Linkhorne Middle School won first place in a statewide stock competition.
These teams will be among the students and teachers honored at the Economic Education Awards Program sponsored by the Center for Economic Education at University of Lynchburg. The annual ceremony recognizes outstanding achievement in K-12 economic education in Central Virginia. The 2015 awards program will be held at 4 p.m. on Thursday, May 21 in Sydnor Performance Hall, Schewel Hall.
“Teachers and students in Central Virginia have given us a lot to celebrate,” said Rebecca Booth, director of the Center for Economic Education. “The teachers have helped their students learn invaluable lessons about how to live and work in the economy. Their success is evident in many ways, but especially in the success that several local students had in the Stock Market Game this year.”
The Stock Market Game is one of several initiatives that the Center for Economic Education spearheads locally. Student teams use their knowledge of the economy, the stock market, and investment strategies to build and manage a portfolio with a hypothetical $100,000. At the end of the challenge, teams are ranked according to the final value of their virtual portfolios.
The two students on the Brookville High School team, advised by teacher Deborah Lester, placed eighth in the Capitol Hill Challenge, a national version of the Stock Market Game that pairs students with members of Congress. This year, the Capitol Hill Challenge included 4,358 teams. By placing in the top 10, the Brookville students win a trip to Washington, D.C. where they will meet Virginia Senator Timothy Kaine. Their portfolio grew from $100,000 to nearly $140,000.
The Linkhorne Middle School team, consisting of three students advised by teacher Brenda Murphy, took first place in the Lynchburg region as well as the state. Their portfolio grew from $100,000 to nearly $120,000, surpassing the S&P 500 growth by 15.25 percent.
In addition to recognition of Stock Market Game participation, Thursday’s program includes recognition of student accomplishments in the Governor’s Challenge in Economics and Personal Finance, a 30-question test for high school students, and Color the Economic Concepts, a coloring contest for elementary school students. Teachers will be recognized with an Economic Lesson/Unit Plan Award and the Outstanding Economic Educator Award.
Dan Mortensen, executive director of the Virginia Council for Economic Education, will attend the awards program to congratulate winners on behalf of the VCEE, and Chris Collins, a member of Sen. Kaine’s staff, plans to attend and congratulate students on behalf of the senator.
