NFIB Introduces Small Business Simulation: 
Johnny Money Online Game

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
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NFIB Young Entrepreneur Foundation’s small business simulation game shows high school students what it’s like to run their own small business.

NFIB’s Young Entrepreneurship Foundation has partnered with the Societal Wealth Program of Wharton Entrepreneurial Programs to develop the Game’s academic standards.  Prof. Ian C. MacMillan, co-director of the Societal Wealth Program, lead a team of graduate and undergraduate students in working with YEF to make the entrepreneurship simulation a resourceful tool for teachers to use in the classroom to show students what it’s like to run their own small business. 

“In order to teach high school students to think like entrepreneurs, teachers can use innovative tools like Johnny Money to inspire students to take charge of their lives by building their own careers,” said MacMillan. “The Johnny Money simulation game introduces students to business concepts in a virtual setting that teaches students to figure out how their decisions impact their business’ bottom line. The game allows any student, from any high school, in every demographic category, to aspire to start a business, design it and learn from multiple failures and successes of running their own virtual small business.”

“We are very excited to be working with Wharton in creating and launching Johnny Money,” said Hank Kopcial, executive director of NFIB’s Young Entrepreneur Foundation. “Wharton is recognized nationwide as the leader in business education. Their expertise has helped make the game user friendly for students and teachers while ensuring that it is educationally sound. NFIB’s Young Entrepreneur Foundation and Wharton have created Johnny Money to be a fun and competitive virtual game that students can play to learn key concepts about running a small business. We can’t wait for teachers to start using our game as a tool to teach students about entrepreneurship.”

Teachers, students and anyone interested in testing their skills at running a small business can visit www.johnnymoney.com to start playing the game. Click on the Play Now button for the game to start. 

The Buddy Group, a digital creative agency headquartered in Irvine, California, has been working with YEF to develop the game. Visa is Co-Presenting Sponsor of the NFIB Entrepreneur-in-the-Classroom programs which includes Johnny Money Online Game, Entrepreneur-in-the-Classroom Curriculum and Take Time to Teach – mentoring program. All programs are FREE resources available online for teachers to teach students about entrepreneurship. 

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About the Wharton School and Wharton Entrepreneurial Programs:  In 1973, The Wharton School became the first school to develop a fully integrated curriculum of entrepreneurial studies. Today Wharton, through Wharton Entrepreneurial Programs <www.wep.wharton.upenn.edu>, supports and seeds innovation and entrepreneurship globally through teaching, research and outreach to a range of organizations through its many programs, initiatives and research centers. At the same time, Wharton students and alumni are helping to build entrepreneurial enterprises around the world and impacting virtually every industry.

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The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania -- founded in 1881 as the first collegiate business school -- is recognized globally for intellectual leadership and ongoing innovation across every major discipline of business education. The most comprehensive source of business knowledge in the world, Wharton bridges research and practice through its broad engagement with the global business community. The school has more than 4,600 undergraduate, MBA, executive MBA, and doctoral students; more than 8,000 annual participants in executive education programs; and an alumni network of more than 82,000 graduates. For more information on the Wharton Business Plan Competition, go to: http://bpc.wharton.upenn.edu.  

About the NFIB Young Entrepreneur Foundation:  The NFIB Young Entrepreneur Foundation is a 501(c)(3) organization promoting the importance of small business and free enterprise to the nation’s youth. More information is available at www.NFIB.com/YEF.  The Foundation is associated with the National Federation of Independent Business; NFIB is the nation’s leading small business association, with offices in Washington, D.C. and all 50 state capitals.