Junior Achievement of Southeastern Michigan

The 26th Annual Chipping In “FORE” Kids Golf Classic is in the books and what a day it was at Oakland University. Every drive, chip, and putt made a real difference for young people across Southeast Michigan. ⛳

Thanks to the incredible support of our players, sponsors, and volunteers, JA’s financial literacy, work readiness, and entrepreneurship programs keep growing. Presented by Amerisure, this is what investing in the next generation looks like.

Thank you to everyone who showed up on the course and behind the scenes. 🙌

📸 Check out these pics for a look at the day.
jamichigan.org/golf

Students from Hanley Elementary came to our Detroit office for a second floor workshop featuring the JA BizTown simulation. They learned about businesses, jobs, money, and the roles people play in a community.

Meghan DeHate, Hanley's educator and our 2026 JA Educator of the Year, brought her students ready to learn. JA staff Melanie and Rachell led the simulation, guiding students through the hands-on experience.

This is what learning looks like when it leaves the classroom!

JA In A Day at Faxon Academy, powered by UHY US. 🏫🙌 Students spent the day learning financial literacy, career readiness, and entrepreneurship. Volunteers brought energy. Students stayed engaged. And one educator, Ms. Lewis, put it this way:

"I was so excited that Faxon Academy was chosen to participate in JA in a Day. From the moment they arrived, everyone was pleasant, enthusiastic, and ready to jump in. The volunteers brought such positive energy and truly connected with our students. It was an amazing experience watching our scholars engage, learn, and enjoy every moment of the day. We are incredibly grateful for the opportunity and look forward to participating again in the future."

A special thank you to Shannon Anspaugh for organizing the event and to Nicole Baker from UHY. Volunteers like you are why JA In A Day succeeds.

Behind every JA event, there is prep work. A lot of it. Volunteers from Accenture spent time at our Detroit office laying the groundwork for the ULTIMATE Networking Experience. They assembled table decorations for our upcoming networking and stock market themed event June 11. The evening of food, drinks, music, and networking is all free of charge.

Thank you to the Accenture team for showing up before the event to make sure everything is ready. You can still join us June 11. Spots are going fast. Entry is free. RSVP is required.

Register here 👉 https://secure.qgiv.com/for/jsmarkec202/event/smcnetworkingevent/

WHERE: JA Finance Park, 577 E. Larned St., Detroit
WHEN: Thursday, June 11 | 5:00 PM – 7:30 PM
🍻 Complimentary beer, wine, and appetizers
💵 Free. RSVP required. Space is limited.

JA In A Day at Theodore Harms Elementary School, powered by Edw C Levy Co. 🏫🙌

Students at this Detroit Public Schools Community District school spent the day learning financial literacy, career readiness, and entrepreneurship. That is a lot of ground to cover in one day, but Levy's volunteers showed up ready to work.

Thank you to Principal Aurelia Martinez for welcoming JA into your building. Thank you to Courtney McCarthy from the Levy construction team for helping organize the event. And thank you to Reuben Maxbauer (JA board member from Levy) and Evan Weiner for your ongoing support and partnership.

Days like this do not happen without school leaders and corporate partners working together. Harms and Levy Construction made it happen.

Students from ACCE in Ypsilanti took on the JA Finance Park challenge. 💼📊

ACCE stands for Achieving College & Career Education, and these students proved they are thinking about both. They moved through our budgeting simulation, making real time decisions about income, expenses, and trade offs. There is no perfect budget. There is only what works for each person's goals.

Volunteers from Huntington National Bank worked alongside them, helping connect classroom concepts to real world banking, saving, and credit.

JA has been serving Southeast Michigan since 1949, including Washtenaw County where Ypsilanti is located. Finance Park is one of the ways we help students practice financial independence before they graduate.

ACCE students left with more than a simulation score. They left with a clearer picture of what their futures could cost and how to plan for it.

Four schools. One mission. A room full of young women planning their financial futures. 💪💰

Students from East English Village, Plymouth High School, Redford Union High School, and River Rouge High School came together at JA Finance Park through Women of Tomorrow. They stepped into our budgeting simulation, making real world decisions about housing, transportation, savings, and trade offs.

One volunteer from Liberty Bank and Trust helped guide the experience, along with JA staff.

Financial literacy is not optional. Programs like this exist because young women deserve to practice managing money before the bills are real.

Citizens brought the energy to Chandler Park Elementary (Chandler Park Academy School District) for JA in a Day. 💼✨

Third graders got a firsthand look at how their city works, the businesses, the people, and the roles that keep a community running, all through the 'JA Our City' program. It is one thing to read about it. It is another to hear it straight from the professionals in your community.

Big shoutout to Brittany O'Connor for rallying the Citizens Bank team and getting them through those classroom doors. This kind of day doesn't happen without people like her behind the scenes making it all come together. Citizens Bank, thank you for investing your time where it matters most, in our kids. 💙