INDIANA BPW FOUNDATION

                                            

   

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PROGRAMS

 

Eighth Grade Essay Contest

One of the primary goals of the Indiana BPW Foundation and especially the Conni Richards Youth Fund, established by the Board in January of 1992 in memory of Conni Richards, is to have teens take a proactive role with regard to their futures.  One way to help the young is through the essay contest

One essay is chosen from each of BPW/Indiana's 7 Districts.  Each of the 7 winners and her/his parent(s)/guardian(s) and teacher will attend a luncheon at the BPW/IN State Convention.  The top 3 winners in the State of Indiana will receive savings bonds.

Essay speech topic for 2009-2010 was  “What positive changes would you make to improve your school?"

Download Application Here

 

 

Reality Store®

Reality Store® is a simulated learning experience in household money management.

 

Purpose The goals of the Reality Store® program are:
  • To help all students learn basic skills in financial planning, goal setting, decision making and career planning.
  • To clarify the need for young women and men to examine their attitudes about their futures and their career expectations.
  • To motivate students to stay in school, stay away from drugs, and avoid pregnancy.
Background The Reality Store® is part of the Women Helping Girls with Choices [WHGWC] projects which BPW/Indiana sponsors throughout the State of Indiana.  The WHGWC project all started the day a young single mother came to the Girls Club in Santa Barbara, California in tears because she couldn't afford to pay her rent and feed her2 children properly.  "Why didn't someone tell me what it would be like when I grew up?" she cried.  Her question made real what we already knew, at least in an abstract sense: that millions of mothers and children in this country are living in or near poverty.

The national program of WHGWC grew out of 1984 collaboration between Girls Clubs of America and BPW of Nashua, New Hampshire.  In 1987, a second - and more ambitious - pilot program was designed.  This one involved 10 states and 127 local projects, with a collective goal of serving 10,000 girls and young women.

In May, 1990 at our annual state convention in Fort Wayne, BPW/Indiana made a commitment to introduce this program to the young women of our state.

In addition to state sponsored projects, local BPW organizations have been actively initiating Choices projects all across the state.

Many Reality Stores® and WHGWC projects are funded with help from local community grants through the Indiana BPW Foundation.

 

The Need Between the ages of 14 and 20, young women and men make critical decisions that affect the course of their whole lives; decisions about educational paths, career options, lifetime mates, and family timing.  They ought to make these critical decisions with knowledge and a sophisticated attitude about the realities and options for their futures.

 

The Answer At the Reality Store®, students will be able to select an occupation they think they would like to have as a 28 year old adult.  They will then be given an amount of "play" money equivalent to the average monthly salary in that occupation.  The students will then go into a Reality Store® where they will need to spend their salary on the necessities and luxuries they envision as part of their adult lifestyle.

Representatives from the housing industry, utilities, grocery stores, department stores, financial institutions, auto dealerships, medical profession, child care centers, travel and entertainment industry, etc. will be present to help the students determine how much of their income will need to be spent in each category in order to provide them with their desired lifestyle.  The goal of this exercise is to help students learn whether their selected occupation will provide the financial resources needed to provide the type of lifestyle they want.

 

BPW/IN Reality Store® manuals are available free of charge to schools within the state of Indiana by requesting one from the BPW/IN State Office, PO Box 33, Knightstown, IN 46148 - phone number 765-345-9812 or email at bpwin@msn.com.

 BPW/IN Reality Store® manuals are available to schools outside the State of Indiana for a charge of $35 for manual; $50 for CD; or $75 for both [which includes shipping].  A check for the exact amount with complete mailing directions needs to be sent to BPW/IN, PO Box 33, Knightstown, IN 46148.

 

Check out the web site at the Learn More Resource Center

[Indiana’s Pre-K to College Connection]

 

Indiana BPW Foundation, Inc.,  PO Box 33, Knightstown, IN 46148

bpwin@msn.com

Phone & Fax: 1-765-345-9812

This site contains links to other Internet sites.  Such links are not endorsements of any product or services in such sites, and no information has been endorsed in such a site or approved by the Indiana BPW Foundation.

Questions or Comments?  Want to add a link?  Contact our President