Contact: Dolores (Mohr) Kenyon
E-mail: dolores@wiclarkcountyhistory.org
Surnames: Clark
----Source: Clark County Press (Neillsville, Clark Co, WI) 7/22/2015
Clark Applies (Business World - 2015)
Clark applies Business World experiences to schooling and job
Madalyn Clark, 16, of Neillsville received a scholarship she applied for herself to attend the Business World program June 21-24 at St. Norbert College in De Pere. Clark said it was a great learning opportunity. (Todd Schmidt/Clark County Press Photo)
By Todd Schmidt
Enterprising Madalyn Clark, 16, daughter of James and Brandi Clark of Neillsville, is a much focused young lady.
Madalyn attended the intensive Business World program June 21-24 at St. Norbert College in De Pere, compliments of a successful Kikkoman Foods scholarship application she wrote herself.
Her older brother, Dalton, attended Business World in the past. The family received an invitation in the mail about six months ago and Madalyn decided to pursue the opportunity. She received confirmation she was accepted into the program about three days after she sent in the scholarship application.
Celebrating its 34th anniversary as a Wisconsin Manufacturers and Commerce (WMC) initiative, Business World provides hands-on experience for student and teaches them about the challenges facing business. The program is sponsored, developed and delivered by the business community of Wisconsin, and, since its inception, has educated nearly 14,000 high school students from around the state.
During the Business World first-year program, student participants are divided into teams of 1--12, who function as an imaginary “company” for the program. With the task of turning their company into a financial success, they create a unique product, develop marketing strategies and design a commercial. In addition, students interact with guest speakers, tour local companies and compete in an online business simulation.
Business World also has an advanced program component for students who successfully complete the first-year program to return for a more advanced session. The advanced program students focus on the bigger picture of business, including marketing and ethics, and they help mentor the first-year students.
The hands-on activities focus on career preparation and workplace skills for success. It is an opportunity that will help students prepare for their future in an increasingly competitive global marketplace.
Business World is sponsored, developed and produced by the WMC Foundation, the educational division of WMC. It is supported by donations from corporations, foundations and individuals who believe the next generation of leaders should have a clear understanding of the real world of business and the importance of the free market system. Visit www.wibusinessworld.org for more information.
“It was a great opportunity to learn different aspects about business,” Madalyn said. She is on a path to attend UW-La Crosse to continue her education and eventually become a neonatal nurse. She is now working 50 hours per week at the Ronnings clothing store in Hayward.
“The Business World experience helps me now in my current job,” she said. “I understand now what my boss has to go through as a business owner.”
Madalyn likes a fast-paced environment, so the Business World calendar was right up her alley.
“Everything was jam-packed,” she said. “I didn’t have much time to breathe. I like schedules, and they were printed right in front of the handbook.”
The first night, participants checked into dormitory rooms and received all the necessary housekeeping instructions. Madalyn was assigned to the Group G marketing team. They worked through a Bus Sim computer exercise to focus their business structure, coming up with the company name “Relaxation Nation.”
The next day, her group created a product called a Stress less bracelet to benefit the healthcare field. They went to a simulated auction armed with $10,000 in play money used to bid on “junk piles” used to build their new product.
“We pretty much put everything together with duct tape,” Madalyn said. “Mom and Grandma got a kick out of that one.”
Students moved on to a trade show, where they learned how to figure the cost of production, which was necessary to come up with a sale price for their product. Tips were given on marketing and advertising.
The third day was spent going through more Bus Sim Exercises and hearing various speakers.
The owner of Title Town Brewery explained the challenges he went through to get started and grow in business, along with how much work it is to continue in operation. He was a popular speaker, partly because he furnished free root beer.
Another speaker talked about the importance of using positive body language to get people to respond favorably to you.
“You have to be OK at work,” Madalyn said. “Customers don’t care if you are having a bad day. If your body language is poor they might shop somewhere else.”
A representative from Mercury Marine hit hard on the impact of social media, including Facebook and Twitter.
“You have to be careful what you display and what you get tagged in,” Madalyn said. “Some companies will go back 10 years doing a background check. Now I want to use Facebook less. People should think before they post things. I wonder if down the line people will trust me with their babies.”
The final day included a presentation of products to the “stockholders.” Each group showed their product, discussing financials and what it took to product it every step of the way. Madalyn’s group went out with a bang, winning first place for their efforts.
They got to do “elevator speeches” of 30 seconds each, explaining concisely the benefits of using and purchasing their products.
The final day wound down with a volleyball tournament, a pizza party and a dance featuring a DJ.
“We really got to be ourselves,” Madalyn said. “It was a lot of fun learning and making new friends.”
Madalyn attended the Neillsville Public School through her freshman year. Last year, as a sophomore, she switched to the eAchieve Academy, a virtual online curriculum. She always made the honor roll before and continued that effort with a high honor roll GPA of 3.7 in the eAchieve program.
She said she switched to eAchieve because it offered more opportunities, along with advanced classes including English.
“With eAchieve it is all on you,” Madalyn noted. “You can’t procrastinate. No one is spoon-feeding you. In Neillsville, you can definitely slide by. You have someone to be responsible to every day. If you don’t do your eAchieve assignments, no one will call. Another reason I went to the online school is the cliques at Neillsville High School drove me nuts.”
Madalyn’s grandparents have a cabin in the Hayward area. She began looking for a job, applying at about 15 places. She stopped at Ronnings to fill out an application and was hired tight away. She began working there May 4.
“Some days get kind of long and hectic,” Madalyn said. “With the online curriculum, you are not tied down to a specific school building. I just took my school with me. It is hard to get my work done. I’ve had some long days.”
Her duties at Ronnings include running the cash register, helping with inventory control, folding and hanging garments and providing good old-fashioned customer service. They feature Minnetonka moccasins, which Madalyn enjoys right sizing for customers.
Madalyn said one day the 30-year-old cash register made a loud, squeaking noise and jammed up. It was down about two hours, so the store clerks had to manually check out using a calculator.
She said everything about her Business World experience was beneficial to her schooling and job.
“I recommend to every kid they attend Business World,” she said. “Business teachers at school have information about the program and how to apply for scholarships. There is also a lot of information about Business World on the Internet.”
