Educational Dividends brings together the Business World and Schools to improve Education

Champaign, IL. – Small business owners have spoken: "Give us better employees and a better educational system." One small business, Educational Dividends of Champaign, IL, is answering their call with innovative educational projects designed to teach K-12 students real-world skills while they are still in school.

A recent survey of small business owners conducted by American Express’s ‘Voices from Main Street’ program has shown that most small business owners, 82%, consider improving education and the level of training of young people for the work world to be extremely important. Since 1994, Educational Dividends has helped over 70,000 students become better-trained employees.

"At Educational Dividends, we bring together people from the education world, the business world, and the government to work through our projects to change the way students learn. Instead of working with abstract problems, students in our projects work on real projects that prove to the students the relevance of their work by showing how their efforts save money and energy," said Carol Timms, President of Educational Dividends.

Most students after completing an Educational Dividends’ project understand the need for team-work and understand the process of beginning a project, working towards a common goal, completing a project and publicizing their achievements. Students also gain experience working with professionals from the business world by inviting experts from their communities to help with their projects.

Educational Dividends develops and manages educational projects for K-12 schools that focus on delivering the content required by Learning Standards while bringing the expertise and leadership of the business world into the world of education. Educational Dividends currently manages three projects, EnergyNet’s Energy Auditing project for grades 6-12, EnergyNet’s Energy Detectives for grades 3-5 and ComEd’s Student Power 2000 program. These projects focus on teaching students energy awareness and how to perform an energy audit of their school building. Students take on real-world tasks, such as project management, conducting public relations campaigns, determining costs and payback periods of their suggestions and asking local business owners for advice on their project, as they take control of their educational environment and direct their own learning. Teachers take on the role of facilitator as they guide the students in their learning.

Educational Dividends, based in Champaign, Illinois, uses insight into business and education to create innovative educational products that provide businesses with a way to invest in education while ensuring quality, balanced learning tools for teachers and students. Educational Dividends has managed projects in over 1,500 public and private schools since 1994. Carol Timms, President of Educational Dividends, is available for comment, interviews, and speaking engagements. For more information concerning this release or Educational Dividends, please call toll-free (877) 359-9444.

# # #