Press release
(Buffalo, NY) – During the month of April, 598 WNY students participated in a lively, month long competition of trading through their participation in the Junior Achievement Virtual Stock Market Challenge.
Students represented twenty schools from across WNY and competed to take top prize
Prior to the JA Stock Market Challenge, JA provides their JA Take Stock in Your Future curriculum to
introduce students to basic concepts about how the market works and the impact of current events. The
curriculum also includes a series of self-guided extension activities for students to engage in deeper learning about the stock market and investing.
Wells Fargo is the Presenting sponsor of this unique and interactive JA learning experience, with one
competition held earlier this school year and another session during this spring semester.
The competition was held online and allows students to experience the real-life stock market in a simulated environment. Students chose to compete as individuals or as teams. Participants began with a $25,000 starting portfolio and were encouraged to make transactions throughout the month. Leaderboards were dynamic and shared weekly using the hashtag #JAWNYStockMarketChallenge.
At the close of competition, Junior Achievement (JAWNY) is pleased to recognize our top three winners, all from Alexander High School. Taking 1st place was Donald Donnelly, 2nd place Ian Edmonds and 3rd place Natalie Whitmore.
Donald Donnelly said, “Due to the economy during this time the stock market was really tricky to deal with…Luck turned in my favor and I ended up winning, great experience!” Ian Edmonds said of the experience, “I learned to have a keen eye for news that hits the airwaves during after-hours. Because that information is almost certainly going to drive a stock one way or another.”
Rounding out the Top 10 rankings are:
4th place: Ethan Foose-Furnik – St. Francis High School
5th place: Kyle Porter, Oakfield-Alabama High School
6th place: Alicia McCarthy-Alexander High School
7th place: Mohamed Hussein-Lafayette International High School
8th place: Bryce Roberts- St. Francis High School
9th place: Dylan Kaczmarksi- St. Francis High School
10th place: Kylee Williamson- Jamestown High School
Students who placed in the top ten all received prizes, including iPad Air donated by HSBC Bank, Visa gift
cards courtesy of West Herr, Tops Friendly Markets gift card, Six Flags Darien Lake passes and Perry’s Ice
Cream prize packs.
Participating Schools:
Erie County: Academy School- BPS #131, Alden High School, Amherst High School, Clarence High School,
East Aurora High School, Emerson High School, Hamburg High School, Kenmore East High School, Lafayette International High School, Pioneer High School, St. Francis High School, Grand Island High School.
Niagara County: Lockport High School, Niagara Falls High School.
Genesee County: Alexander High School, Batavia High School, LeRoy High School, Oakfield-Alabama High
School.
Chautauqua County: Jamestown High School.
Wyoming County: Attica High School.
This program is not possible without support from Sponsors: Presenting – Wells Fargo; Additional support
from: BankOnBuffalo; Delta Air Lines; The Lenna Foundation; HSBC Bank; Bryant & Stratton College; Tops
Friendly Markets; Perry’s Ice Cream; Zgoda and Associates CPAs,; PwC; Reid Family Foundation.; Deloitte;
Evans Bank; KPMG LLP; Lawley; Linde; Lippes Mathias Wexler Friedman LLP; National Fuel; Phillips Lytle
LLP; SEFCU; Seneca Foods Foundation; WSF Industries, Inc.; West Herr Automotive Group; L&M Wealth
Management; Financial Trust Federal Credit Union, Freed Maxick CPAs; Gramkee Financial Consulting,
KeyBank N.A.; Lakelet Capital LLC, MidCity Office Furniture; Monofrax; Northwest Bank;
SendYourKidsToCollege.com, Stahlka Agency; TriMain Development.
Proceeds from the JA Virtual Stock Market Challenge support Junior Achievement’s financial literacy,
entrepreneurship, and career & work-readiness pathway programs for kindergarten-12th grade students.
For more information about Junior Achievement programs, visit www.jawny.org