From June 8–11, 2025, the brightest young minds in entrepreneurship gathered in Atlanta, Georgia for the inaugural Future Bound by Junior Achievement at Georgia State University. Chagrin Falls High School's "Broke to the Future" team, consisting of Financial Literacy students Elias Havas, Zachary Huey, Dane Sellars and James Wagner, qualified for the national event after finishing second at the Greater Cleveland Junior Achievement Stock Market Challenge on April 25th at Tri-C Corporate College. Junior Achievement of Greater Cleveland graciously covered the costs of the group's airfare and housing while in Atlanta.
"Broke to the Future" was one of 50 teams invited to the national competition. Each team began with a $1,000,000 portfolio to invest in fictional stocks over a 90-day period. The team finished 34th at nationals with a return of 6.34% and a final portfolio value of $1,063,430.40. This marks the second consecutive year a Chagrin Falls team has qualified for the Junior Achievement National Stock Market Challenge, following two teams that qualified in spring 2024.
Future Bound is Junior Achievement's pinnacle event that celebrates all four of JA's national competitions. JA student leaders from across the United States gathered in Atlanta for three days of high-impact JA experiences. In addition to participating in their national competition, students engaged in workshops led by national experts in innovation, entrepreneurship, and business, gaining real-world insights and critical skills around money, jobs, and entrepreneurship.
Image 1 (Left to Right: Elias Havas, Dane Sellars, James Wagner and Zachary Huey)
Image 2 (Left to Right): Dane Sellars, Elias Havas and Zachary Huey