George Washington University student volunteers partnered with D.C. youth on Saturday to usher in spring and learn about social entrepreneurship through one simple tool: a cool glass of lemonade.
Lemonade Day D.C., hosted by the George Washington School of Business, was the culmination of months of planning and more than 1,000 hours of service completed by more than 600 GW students as they mentored youth at 60 sites in all eight wards of D.C.
“This day is a medium through which every neighborhood is connecting and sharing in a positive community event,” said junior Emily Massel, founder of Lemonade Day D.C. “Because of Lemonade Day, 2,000 entrepreneurial seeds have been planted by over 600 new ‘gardeners’ as mentors,” she said.
“Today we are celebrating that success, not as a university, not as a ward or a quadrant, but as one city and one community,” Ms. Massel added.
In 2012, with support from the GWSB First Year Development Program, Ms. Massel founded the D.C. city chapter of Lemonade Day to teach financial literacy through a series of mentorship sessions and to empower youth to create and implement a business plan for a lemonade stand.
GW joined the national Lemonade Day program network, which was founded in 2007 and has grown to include 36 city chapters.
National Lemonade Day will be held on May 4.
Ms. Massel thanked sponsors PNC Bank, Arthur and Judith Mintz, Gallup Inc. and Gallup Inc. CEO Jim Clifton at a luncheon to kick off a tour of Lemonade Day sites around the city for student leaders, sponsors and other program partners.
She also highlighted the support of the Student Association, Ward 5 Councilmember Kenyan McDuffie and GW alumnus Mariya I. Bouraima, B.B.A. ’06.
Ms. Massel said that the importance of Lemonade Day is in teaching young people about financial literacy before high school, when they need to start making financial decisions that will affect their future.
“Lemonade Day teaches through a medium that kids have genuine interest, passion and talent in,” Ms. Massel said. “When a sixth-grade boy from Anacostia Savoy Elementary School returns to the second mentorship session with his entire business plan completed, you know he is destined to be a business leader.”
“It is up to us to identify and garner this undeniable entrepreneurial spirit and talent,” she added.
Lemonade Day was added to the First Year Development Program curriculum last year as a for-credit course to support the school’s focus on social entrepreneurship. It emphasizes the importance of sustainable social engagement through fair business practices.
The experiential education program has become the largest engagement program in the GWSB undergraduate office, Associate Dean for Undergraduate Programs Isabelle Bajeux-Besnainou said.
“It is very important for our first-year business students to engage in service, because it will become a part of their lives,” Dr. Bajeux-Besnainou said. “It is a great joy to watch the GW students go out into the community and have a positive experience.”
In addition to service, students provided written reflections following the mentorship process. Dr. Bajeux-Besnainou said that she hopes the program will continue to expand and engage more university and community members.
To that end, GWSB will distribute Lemonade Day materials to schools, recreational centers and other organizations interested in teaching students to “spend a little and save a little” with the program.
Perhaps the best example of the benefits of Lemonade Day was a stand on the GW campus at the corner of 21st and G streets.
As people walked by, two J.O. Wilson Elementary School first-grade students-turned-entrepreneurs stood at a stand with brightly colored signs advertising one cup of lemonade for one dollar.
“Nice doing business with you,” one smiling student said as he accepted a dollar and handed out a glass.
