Kimberly Rhoden

Rhoden's "Acts of Kindness: A Winning Enterprise" program teaches students about community involvement and giving, along with the concept of business economics. Students select, produce and market a custom-made project for a "Holiday Bizarre" to benefit needy children and their families. Classrooms are transformed into innovative small businesses and students, teachers and parents assume the roles of managers, laborers, marketing experts and consumers. Students learn to be young entrepreneurs and explore real life decision making and problem solving as they work to gather resources and produce quantities of a useful, original holiday items to be marketed to their peers and parents. Students use the profits earned to purchase holiday toys and gifts for needy children and families in their community.