Dora entrepreneurship program teaches students to start business

Eight Dora High School students are in business.

A youth entrepreneurship training program called Biz-Ed Ventures, which offers a grant to start a new business, offered a seminar on starting a business from the ground up in Dora recently.

“You’re learning how to run your own business someday,” Ashley Kanmore, 15, said. “You’re just learning how to manage your own business and the financial parts of it.”

Kanmore’s business, Presentations and More, received a $150 startup grant that will be used for creating brochures and Power Point presentations.

The program is part of the New Mexico Revitalization Program for the Rural Education Department.

The seminars ran Feb. 15-18. Students presented their business concepts and plans to judges on the final day.

Students created their own business plan and learned how to market their ideas. Each business is a privately owned, home-based business, said Michael Rivera, Biz Ed-Ventures president.

“It is great program and the students really learn a lot,” Rivera said. “They learn things that I didn’t learn until I was in college in a short period of time. It is a great motivation for kids who want to start their own business.”

Biz Ed-Ventures has been in operation since 2004.

Savannah Dimas, 16, owner of Sav’s Simple Sweets, said she enjoyed baking cookies, cupcakes and cakes, so it only made sense to turn that into her niche.

“I learned that it didn’t matter how old you were; you can start your own business,” Dimas said. “You try to figure out how much (money) you’re going to start out with to go toward advertising.”

Dora Principal David Bass said a lot of the ideas the students had could also help them make a decent living.

“It is up to them,” Bass said. “They have the tools if they’re interested in it. I know some of them have some pretty good ideas that could take off and develop into something for this group.”