Mission Statement: Junior Achievement will ensure that every child has a fundamental understanding of the free enterprise system.

Our Purpose: Junior Achievement educates and inspires young people to value free enterprise, business and economics to improve the quality of their lives.

Operating since 1919 nationally, and 1953 in Washington, Junior Achievement (JA) is a nonprofit organization providing a series of business, economics and life-skills programs to enhance the education of young people. The JA dynamic is found in the hands-on, interactive materials that comprise its business and economics curricula and the community volunteers who bring the programs to life on a daily basis. More than 3,000 community volunteers spend time in classrooms, working with young people and providing important adult mentorship. JA serves students in 69 school districts throughout Western Washington and the Tri-Cities and will reach 103,000 kindergarten through twelfth grade students during the 2005-06 school year.