NUKOLI — Despite the recession impacting a wide range of local economic sectors, Kaua‘i’s Finest, a California Virtual Enterprise program at Kapa‘a High School, is projecting a 5 percent growth, said the group’s accounting department Tuesday night. The accounting department
NUKOLI — Despite the recession impacting a wide range of local economic sectors, Kaua‘i’s Finest, a California Virtual Enterprise program at Kapa‘a High School, is projecting a 5 percent growth, said the group’s accounting department Tuesday night.
The accounting department of Kaua‘i’s Finest is made up of first- and second-semester students who are part of the program.
Offering a variety of activities for people interested in having fun while learning about the cultural and historical aspects of Kaua‘i, the projection is based on the fact that despite lower visitor arrivals, the company’s offerings appeal to young people living here as well as recent arrivals to the island.
For many of the students taking part in the second year of the program, there were many aspects of the business they had never had experience in.
One of these areas was building a Web site and “creating a shopping cart that worked,” the students told the audience gathered at the Virtual Enterprise night, Wednesday at the Hilton Kaua‘i Beach Resort.
“This alone is an expansion of the program,” said Chris Farinas, the Kapa‘a High School economics teacher who oversees the program.
The Virtual Enterprise program is not new, Farinas said. It was born in Europe, brought to America by New York who discovered it in Europe, and eventually, gave birth in the California school system where there are approximately 300 schools that participate in the program.
“This is our second year, and last year, we started with 13 students in one class with our Virtual Enterprise night being held in the school library,” Farinas said. “This year, we have 54 students in two classes and our Virtual Enterprise night is here at the Hilton.”
Once established, the students work through a Virtual Mall and do business through a Virtual Bank so no real money is exchanged. But outside of that difference, everything is real-world.
“It’s a new experience about how the real world is,” said Sheri Melchor, one of the students. “The only difference is you don’t use real money so you don’t lose anything.”
With Farinas’ help, the students determined the Kaua‘i’s Finest business plan, mission statement and means of marketing utilizing surveys.
For more information, visit www.virtualenterprise.org
