Our Core Values
Inspiration | Collaboration | Social Responsibility
Junior Achievement of South Florida
Junior Achievement of South Florida is training the next generation of business leaders, employees, and consumers by educating students about financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and work readiness.
Junior Achievement of South Florida was established in 1959 and founded nationally in 1919. Its programs reach 50,000 K-12 students in Broward and south Palm Beach counties. They are designed to teach elementary students about their roles as individuals, workers, and consumers, and to prepare middle and high school students for key economic and workforce issues they will face.
Background
In an industry where the skilled trades and specialized career tracks are crucial to its vitality, the maritime community is facing a workforce that’s aging out with skilled labor being very hard to find.
Understanding the need to keep the industry thriving with a new generation of workers, 24 marine industry companies joined forces with Junior Achievement of South Florida to create Sea the World.
The Marine Industry Storefront is comprised of nine walls representing shipyard trade workers, engine room specialists, yachting professionals and other areas like marina management, training, boat building to name a few.
The marine industry storefront inspires students to join the $12.5 billion/year economic engine that provides the tri-county with 149,000 careers/jobs.
Learn more about Junior Achievement of South Florida - https://www.jasouthflorida.org/
New Partners - School Term 2022-2025
Founding Partners
- AERÉ Marine Group
- Advanced Mechanical Enterprises/AMESOLUTIONS.COM
- AdvantageServices.Net
- Derecktor Shipyards
- Elite Marine AC
- FB Marine Group
- Global Marine Travel (GMT)
- IGY Marinas
- Lauderdale Marine Center
- Luxury Home Consultants
- Marine Industries Association of South Florida (MIASF)
- Maritime Professional Training (MPT)
Team
Christine Battles, Advanced Mechanical Enterprises
JA Sea The World Founder - Volunteer
Christine with AME and Megan with Pier Sixty-Six raised an astonishing $186k to continue making the JA Sea The World Marine Industry Storefront a reality for 2022 - 2025. Their tireless efforts have provided 8th-grade students with the opportunity to explore the many possibilities of a career path in the maritime industry. There are plans for expanding this project even further - by adding additional 'wow' factors into the store-front space and providing more resources for students who are interested in pursuing a successful career in this field. She hopes that with her guidance and support (alongside her inspiring colleagues and donors of this marine storefront), more students will be able to chase after their dreams of becoming successful professionals within this rewarding industry. The latest addition to the space is a life-like, 3D cargo ship to better highlight commercial marine alongside recreational marine possibilities.
Rewind to 2018, Christine with AME, along with three dynamic women - Lisa Morley with MPT, Megan Lagasse of Pier Sixty-Six Marina and Lucy Reed of The Triton Newspaper - came together to collectively raised $137k to build and produce JA Sea The World Marine Industry Storefront.
At the heart of their efforts was a group they identified as the CORE 7: Christine Battles (AME), Lisa Morley (MPT), Megan Lagasse (Pier 66), Lucy Reed (The Triton Newspaper), Lori Wheeler (MIASF), Bert Fowles (IGY). Karen Dudden-Blake (Palladium Technologies retired 2021) We can't thank them enough for their help in developing this maritime educational experience for students in the south Florida area.
Joanna Ramirez, Good Label Co.
JA Sea The World Storefront Graphic Designer - Volunteer
Joanna with GLC designed the entire marine industry storefront with the help of the founding members and partners. Joanna's creative expertise in imagining the student experience in the storefront made a big difference. Prior to starting her own digital marketing agency, Joanna worked with Advanced Mechanical Enterprises for 5 years under the direction of Christine Battles. Since her departure, she's stayed close to her AME family and still handles all of their marketing efforts.
Want to join the cause?
Contact us to learn how.