1. Welcome to JA BizTown®
Volunteer Mentor Training
Click “next” to advance through training
presentation

2. Thank You!
Welcome to Junior Achievement of
Central Indiana’s JA BizTown!
• By volunteering to be a mentor for your child’s
school, you will be an integral part of a memorable,
exciting experience.
• The following slides will walk you through your day
and answer questions you may have about JA
BizTown.
• Completion of this training is required in order to
participate on the day of the simulation.

3. Volunteer Training
Objectives
By the end of this training, you will understand:
• the purpose of JA BizTown
• the role of a mentor in experiential learning
• the operation of the on-site JA BizTown
simulation
• where to go and what to expect on the day
of the visit to JA BizTown

4. What is JA BizTown?
JA BizTown is taught by trained teachers using a 4-6
week, in-class curriculum followed by a visit to the
Gene B. Glick Junior Achievement Education
Center.
While at JA BizTown, students (a.k.a. “JA BizTown
Citizens”) operate their own mini-town while they
act as producers and consumers.
Students experience the circular flow of goods,
services and resources within a community as they
practice the rights and responsibilities of citizenship.

5. JA BizTown Citizens…
• Manage their own checking accounts
• Seek business loans
• Make purchases
• Work in teams to operate successful businesses
• Manage staff, financial resources, inventory and
customers
• Earn paychecks
• Pay taxes
• Consider philanthropic contributions
…sound like a lot?

6. JA BizTown Citizens…
Prior to arriving at JA BizTown, students will have
applied for jobs, gone through the interview process
and actually been hired into a business!
The day of the simulation is THEIR day to take all of
that classroom preparation and have real-life
hands-on experience.
Remember – all JA BizTown businesses
are owned and operated by the
students!

7. The Mentor’s Role
A visit to JA BizTown allows students to apply
knowledge they have obtained in the classroom by
performing hands-on activities.
The role of the mentor is to serve as the link between
JA BizTown and the real world…
…one of the most important steps in
experiential learning.

8. What Is
Experiential Learning?
Experiential Learning uses facilitated
experiences and focused reflection to
increase knowledge and enhance
education.

9. What Is
Experiential Learning?
• Experiential learning leads students through
a “What? So What? Now What?” cycle.
• Debriefings allow important connections between
the simulation experience (or classroom lesson)
and the real world.
Debriefings are important!

10. Facilitating Experiential
Learning
The following slides will show you examples of how to make use
of experiential learning while at JA BizTown.

11. Ask Leading Questions
The Mentor says, “So, CEO, I see your business
has customers, yet no one is at the counter
to assist them. As CEO, how would you
address this?”
The mentor’s goal is to encourage the CEO to
find a way to solve the problem.
What happens next?

12. Possible Solutions
• The CEO might round up the employees to
serve the customers
• The CEO may jump in and serve the
customers him or herself if that is possible
• The CEO may not get the connection. If this
happens, others may step up and take the
leadership role.
Solutions are all part of the
learning process…

13. The Learning Process
• What? We have customers and no one is
serving them.
• So What? If we have no one assisting
them, they may go somewhere else to shop
and we will not make money.
• Now What? I will resolve the problem by
serving my customers and do so with great
customer service.

14. Share Your Own Stories
We’ve all had some interaction with
workforce – share your personal
experiences to make a real life
connection.
Share current experiences
or think back to the past…

15. Sharing Experiences
A JA BizTown employee may be overwhelmed
by the tasks he/she is performing – this is
sometimes true for CEOs and CFOs.
CFOs have a great deal of paper on their
desks from check stubs to invoices, etc. You
offer some real life tips for handling stress.
But how…?

16. Sharing Experiences
• Begin by acknowledging that the student has a very important
job and a lot of responsibility. Ask, “Does this make you feel a
bit overwhelmed?” If yes, you might say,
• “Sometimes when I feel overwhelmed during my job, it helps
me if I get myself organized…do you think that might help
you?”
• You can sort through the paperwork and it offers the student a
valuable real life tool to determine what has been completed
and what still needs to be done.

17. More Mentor Suggestions
• Help students stay focused on their tasks – all students have a
job description that will help them through the day. Reading
through this description is necessary to understand what their
role will be in that particular business.
• Applaud good teamwork/Offer encouragement – some
students may be out of their comfort zones in leadership roles
or may become overwhelmed. This is REAL LIFE! Share
suggestions or let them talk through their challenges.
Remember – don’t do the work for the students.
Simply guide them. If they make mistakes, they will
learn from those mistakes!

18. The Day of the Visit
• Enter the Gene B. Glick Junior Achievement Education Center through the door
with the black awning on the west side of the building facing Keystone Ave.
The Gene B. Glick Junior Achievement Education Center
7435 N. Keystone Avenue
Indianapolis, IN 46240
(317) 252-5900

19. Where to Check In
• A JA BizTown staff member will invite all mentors to enter
the JA BizTown simulation space
• There will be a registration table as you enter directly into
the Restaurant area of JA BizTown.
• The students will be bringing sack lunches to JA BizTown
and we ask that you do as well. Once you enter the
simulation space, you will not be able to leave until the
simulation concludes.

20. Getting Acquainted
Upon arrival to JA BizTown:
• A JA staff member will check your name off of a list
and give you your business assignment for the day.
You will be asked to fill out a nametag.
• You will be given a volunteer form to complete. On
this form you will authorize that you will review the
child abuse policy (located in your business) and
estimate your driving miles to the facility. This allows JA
to keep track of volunteer time.
• You will also be given a “friendly postcard.” You may
write a brief note to your child. This card will be
delivered through the FedEx delivery service.

21. Getting Acquainted
• A JA BizTown staff member will present a brief
overview of the day and be available to answer
questions.
• Before the students arrive, you will have the
opportunity to explore your business and familiarize
yourself with the paperwork and the schedule for
the day.
• Prepare yourself – when the students arrive, it’s time
to “get down to business”.

22. Inside JA BizTown!

23. Sample Daily Schedule
• Welcome
• First Staff Meeting in each business (mentors & students)
• Business Start Up
• Bank Loans
• Opening Town Meeting
• Employee Lunch Breaks (join your child)
• Second Staff Meeting
• Employee Shopping Breaks (stay in your business)
• Business Clean-up
• Closing Town Meeting

24. Visual Aides
• Completing a Deposit Ticket
• Endorsing a paycheck
• Entering a transaction in a
Checkbook Register
Throughout the day, JA BizTown
Citizens will need to
complete the tasks outlined
above. Posters like the one
you see are displayed in
each business as references.

25. JA BizTown Businesses
• Newspaper (JA BizTown Journal)
• Delivery & Supply Center (FedEx)
• Wellness Center (Peyton Manning Children’s
Hospital at St. Vincent)
• Fifth Third Bank
• Restaurant (Steak ‘n Shake)
• Laboratory (Lilly)
• Print Shop (TKO Graphix)
• City Hall

26. JA BizTown Businesses
• Professional Offices (Price Waterhouse Coopers, Taft/,
Duke Realty Corp.)
• Recycling Center (Ray’s Trash Service)
• Utility Center (Citizen’s Energy Group)
• JA Retail Center (Lids)
• Bank (PNC Bank)
• Radio Station (Radio Disney)
• JA Multi-Media
Detailed descriptions of each of these business can be found
by visiting www.jaindy.org

27. Final Details
Click below for directions to JA BizTown
Map and Directions
(if link is not active, simply right click on it to open hyperlink)

28. Thank you for agreeing to help
Junior Achievement and your
school to enhance student
learning - see you soon at…