From a simple storage closet to a supported insert, the school store has had a journey stretching over at least sixteen years. It started out being entirely student run, to being a faculty supported part for Maize High School’s Business Professionals of America (BPA). Members quickly learn that the club has multiple benefits, including ways to earn a few extra dollars.
Whether you’re looking for some skills to use in future jobs, working in a retail like environment, or simply looking for some extra money to line your pockets during school hours, the school store can help. Senior Elizabeth Akers is currently the School Store Manager.
“I joined my freshman year. I just wanted a different high school experience and learned that I could earn scholarships through BPA and wanted to be able to pay less for college,” said Akers.
Students in BPA learn valuable lessons in professionalism as well as operating a retail business and working jobs like restocking and being a cashier, or even managing other people and their shifts around the store. Students also get to meet some people they’d probably never meet otherwise.
“I just love seeing all the different people, and watching our own business grow and thrive. Learning how to maintain a business has been extremely helpful and rewarding. I enjoy making some of the cookies we sell and talking with my coworkers,” said Akers.
As a chance to learn some more responsibility before you’re shoved into the workforce, the school store is very helpful. You might wonder how it went from pens, pencils and scratch paper to an MHS pocket filled with school spirit, snacks, and drinks to help students get themselves through the day.
“We have kids scheduled to run the store in the morning before the bell, during FLEX (MHS’s version of encore), and we have a class in the third hour to run the store during the different lunch periods.” said Mrs. Handy, Maize High BPA sponsor and adult supervisor of the store.
The School Store takes a lot of work from both kids and adults together. It builds great opportunities for all different ages to get to depend and learn about what it takes to make each other as productive as possible to achieve the goal of maximizing the potential of the school store.
“During our third hour we have an Applied Business Development class. It’s just studying business operations first hand by running the store during the lunches. It helps kids to learn about different things like profit, markup, customer service, dependability, all these different things that are extremely important for kids today to enter the workforce,” said Mrs. Handy.
BPA uses the money for different things, whether it’s to restock the store, pay the workers, or pay for their different competitions. It’s an important and vital part of the club’s success and teaches the kids about navigating taxes and required expenses.
BPA can be a valuable asset to MHS students of all ages. From working in the school store and learning about businesses first hand, to studying needs to fine-tune their goods and profitability. It can be anything from simple work experience to one of the most important decisions in a student’s life.
