In a constantly changing environment, having life skills is an essential part of being able to meet the challenges of everyday life. The dramatic changes in global economies over the past five years have been matched with the transformation in technology and these are all impacting on education, the workplace and our home life. While students work hard to get good grades, many still struggle to gain employment. According to research by the CBI (Confederation of British Industry) in 2011 employers were looking not just for academic success but key employability skills including the ability to self-manage, solve problems and understand the business environment (Macmillian English, http://www.macmillanenglish.com/life-skills/why-are-life-skills-important/).  This is why the Lewis County Extension Office offers the program The American Private Enterprise System.  

The American Private Enterprise System is a 2 day program offered to high school juniors. Seniors that have participated in the program the previous year come back as junior leaders to assist with the program.  This year the program had 20 junior participants and 4 senior participants.  The program teaches teens about our economic system though program materials which include a board case problem for groups to solve, a tour of a local business, Superior Composites, and seven guest speakers that are leaders in the community covering a topic they have expert knowledge in. The guest speakers talk to participants about how America does business, the role of government in our economy, how our economy works, how businesses operate, cooperatives, partnerships, corporations, limited liability companies, sole proprietorships, and e-commerce .  After each speaker a quiz is given over the topic presented and at the end of the program a test is given over all material presented. Top scorers advance to The American Private Enterprise System Kentucky Youth Seminar held at the University of Kentucky. 

Participants performed excellent on the exams with the majority of participants scoring 70% or higher.  The top four scorers on the quizzes and exam advanced to the American Private Enterprise System Kentucky Youth Seminar program held at the University of Kentucky.  The four seniors that acted as junior leaders also advanced to the conference at UK.  While at the American Private Enterprise System Kentucky Youth Seminar all four of the top scorers that advanced were overall top scorers there and each received a $600.00 scholarship to the university of their choice totaling $2400 in scholarships earned for Lewis County. One participant won the David C. Sparrow Spirit of Extension Award, two were on teams whose board case placed first and all four placed either first or second on an exam.