YEA competiton: Newport News 14-year-old wins Virginia Peninsula chamber trip to Florida with his business idea; La Porte (Indiana) Chamber of Commerce Distribution for Education Needs Survey; SBA to sign partnership agreement at Greater Jackson chamber Partnership; Saginaw County (Michigan) Chamber of Commerce endorses Proposal 1; Little Rock Chamber accelerator event: Gov. Hutchinson sees 20% of Arkansas’ students in computer classes; Elgin city manager on job, mistakes at Elgin Chamber's event: "CEO Unplugged" ; Women invited to April 21 chamber lunch in Wisconsin Rapids; Naashom Marx joins the Northern Kentucky Chamber as VP of business growth and international trade; Chamber interest: Marquette-McGregor (Iowa) area looks to capitalize on geotourism; Famous Chamber of Commerce Quotation: (Attitude)

Good Morning, chamber world! It is going to be a great day!

YEA competiton: Newport News 14-year-old wins Virginia Peninsula chamber trip to Florida with his business idea

Caleb Lafferty had wanted an easier way to free up space on his mobile devices on the go. His solution won him a trip to Florida.
"I got the idea from a common problem I have in my everyday life," Lafferty, 14, told a panel of judges Wednesday night. "I like to take a lot of pictures of a lot of things and my devices are always filling up, and I have no way of emptying on the go."
The MediaCopyPro would be a more secure way to transfer files from smartphones and tablets than using Internet or cloud-based storage, the Newport News teen told judges at the Virginia Peninsula Chamber of Commerce office in Hampton.
Plus, users wouldn't need an Internet connection if they are in the middle of nowhere. He envisions a pocket-sized hard drive prototype could be completed by June.
Lafferty has been developing a Flash-go Storage business plan as part of the Chamber's Young Entrepreneurs Academy, which is a mentor program to teach middle- and high-schoolers how to run a business. Read more: Daily Press



La Porte (Indiana) Chamber of Commerce Distribution for Education Needs Survey

Dear La Porte Community:

La Porte Community School Corporation needs you to "Click Away".

The La Porte Community School Corporation welcomes your participation in our online surveys.  We ask that every staff member, parent, community member and student (grade 8-12) complete our online surveys which are designed to provide crucial information as we plan improvements in our student programs.

All surveys are accessible on the district web site at http://survey.lpcsc.k12.in.us/.

This second and final round of surveys addresses items in which we need input regarding student programs.  Please help us spread the word by directing everyone to our web site to participate in these brief surveys that will be available from now until April 4, 2015.   Experts from Odle, McGuire, and Shook Architects will be analyzing the resulting data for reference in future community meetings and recommendations.

Our students, staff, and community partners are excited about the potential that exists to improve our student programs and the way we currently prepare students for college and careers.

"Click Away" to see for yourself!

Thank you in advance for your participation!

Respectfully,

Mark D. Francesconi
Superintendent, La Porte Community School Corporation 

SBA to sign partnership agreement at Greater Jackson Chamber Partnership

At 9 a.m. on April 9 at the Greater Jackson Chamber Partnership, the U.S. Small Business Administration's Mississippi District Director Janita Stewart will sign a Partnership Agreement with a coalition of local economic and business development entities which include the City of Jackson, Greater Jackson Chamber Partnership, Mississippi Development Authority, Mississippi e-Center @JSU and the Mississippi Minority Business Alliance, Inc.
Thepartnership agreement signifies a joint effort by the SBA and local resource partners to promote SBA's Emerging Leaders Initiative training program which is committed to providing entrepreneurial training and support to small businesses in Mississippi.
Mississippi is one of 22 new cities nationwide selected to launch its 2015 Emerging Leaders executive-level training series. Introduced in 2008 as E200, the initiative has trained more than 2,400 promising small business owners in underserved communities. Emerging Leaders is an intensive training initiative to accelerate high-potential small businesses' growth in America's urban areas. The collaboration with the provides qualifying small businesses access to an extensive curriculum and tools that catapults them to the next level and help them emerge as growing, self-sustaining businesses in their community. Read more: Hattiesburg American
 

Saginaw County (Michigan) Chamber of Commerce endorses Proposal 1

The organization representing many Saginaw County business owners has endorsed the road funding proposal coming to Michigan voters in May.
The Saginaw County Chamber of Commerce announced Friday, March 27, that its board of directors decided to endorse Proposal 1, which will be decided by the state's voters on May 5.
Board Chairman Jeff Martin said the chamber "thoroughly reviewed the proposal" and polled all of its nearly 1,000 members on the ballot question.
"Given the significant positive feedback from our chamber members, we voted to support passage of Proposal 1 on the May 5 ballot," Martin said.
If approved by voters, Proposal 1 would amend the Michigan Constitution by increasing the state sales tax from 6 percent to 7 percent. Read more: M LIVE

Little Rock Chamber accelerator event: Gov. Hutchinson sees 20% of Arkansas’ students in computer classes

Gov. Asa Hutchinson told a group of startup executives and entrepreneurs visiting Little Rock that one of his educational visions is for 20% of Arkansas students to eventually take computer coding classes while in high school.
“When that happens, we will be producing and putting 6,000 computer coders into the Arkansas economy every year. Does that not have the opportunity to provide a lot of ‘sauce’ to the entrepreneurial spirit of Arkansas? That is what I am excited about,” the governor told a touring delegation of tech and startup entrepreneurs at the downtown Little Rock Venture Center.
The group was in Central Arkansas at the invitation of the Venture Center, the Little Rock Chamber-created nonprofit startup accelerator that is one of the new tenants housed in the downtown Technology Center. The guest entrepreneurs were in town to talk with local officials about ways to further develop the region’s so-called “startup ecosystem,” organizers said. Read more: The City Wire




Elgin city manager on job, mistakes at Elgin Chamber's event:  "CEO Unplugged"

From his biggest pet peeves to fessing up about what he believes he handled poorly, Elgin City Manager Sean Stegall allowed on Wednesday a more-candid-than-usual look at how he goes about his job.

Stegall spoke to a crowd of 50 or so gathered at the Elgin Area Chamber of Commerce's monthly "CEO Unplugged -- A Personal Look at the Leader" luncheon series, which features business and civic leaders discussing their leadership styles and approach to success.

His role as city manager is not to tell city council members -- his bosses -- what to do, but rather help them understand what they themselves want to accomplish. "There is not a 'right thing' to do," he said, later adding, "If someone feels a certain way, you're not going to change the way they feel with more facts."

His philosophy is to be a leader only when necessary and serve the people who work for him, he said.

His mother and grandmother were social workers, which played into his desire to become a public servant. Read more: Daily Herald

Women invited to April 21 chamber lunch in Wisconsin Rapids

The Heart of Wisconsin Chamber of Commerce will host a Working Women’s Luncheon from 11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. April 21 at The Ridges Golf Course, 2311 Griffith Ave.
The theme is financial wellness; Bob O’Connor from O’Connor Coaching in the guest speaker. O’Connor’s presentation will discuss feeling financial stress at home and work, why budgets don’t work, becoming intentional with your money, financial peace of mind, and how to take action in regard to your finances.
Marketplace booths open at 10:45 a.m. The lunch includes door prizes and networking. Read more: WisconsinRapidsTribune.com

Naashom Marx joins the Northern Kentucky Chamber as VP of business growth and international trade

The Northern Kentucky Chamber of Commerce hired Naashom Marx as vice president of Business Growth and International Trade.
Marx previously worked for the City of Covington as the business development manager for two years. In her new role, she will serve as the key business development resource for Chamber members, connect businesses with overseas resources and market opportunities, and be the liaison for relationships between regional businesses and local, national and international organizations, government trade officials and community partners, according to a press release. Read more: Cincinatti.com

Chamber interest: Marquette-McGregor (Iowa) area looks to capitalize on geotourism

Geotourism is the new buzz word around the McGregor and Marquette area thanks to National Geographic’s new Mississippi River Corridor Geotourism Program.

The term, according to National Geographic, means “tourism that sustains or enhances the geographical character of a place—its environment, culture, aesthetics, heritage and the well-being of its residents.”

Last month, McGregor-Marquette Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Carolyn Gallagher and Katrina Moyna, Marquette’s Business and Tourism Coordinator, each attended meetings explaining the program, which “seeks to capture and promote the culture, heritage and ecological diversity of the people and places that are connected to the Mississippi River through the voices and stories of the people who live along its shores.”

In order to do this, places up and down the Mississippi are encouraged to nominate distinctive and authentic points of interest that make the area unique. That can include businesses like bars and restaurants, shops, B&Bs and wineries; farmers markets; art and nature centers; museums and historic sites; festivals and events; geologic features like the bluffs; and outdoor experiences like hiking, hunting, fishing or visiting parks. Any points of interest located within a county, like Clayton County, that borders the Mississippi is eligible. A Geotourism MapGuide website will be created using these points of interest, allowing travelers to plan trips along the Mississippi River. Read more: North Iowa Times

Famous Chamber of Commerce Quotation: (Attitude)

"Success in life comes not from holding a good hand but in playing a poor hand well." (Dennis Waitley and Rem Witt)