Achievers International, an international economic education program, was piloted in the 1995-1996 school year. It was coordinated by Georgia Power with the support of other prominent businesses in Georgia. This project is a unique opportunity for students in Georgia to link with schools in Scotland. Students actively participate in the world's economy by forming companies and importing and exporting a product to their partner school.
The opportunity for Georgia students to become involved in the global market resulted from a meeting between Georgia Power representatives and Scottish Education officials attending the National Association of Partners in Education conference held in Washington, D.C. in November of 1994.
Achievers International enables students to learn the commercial and entrepreneurial skills required to set up a company, identify products, discover marketing opportunities, explore manufacturing skills, and then physically export their products at a profit
In the pilot year, participating Georgia schools were: Newnan High School, McIntosh High School, Sandy Creek High School and O.P. Evans Middle School. There respective parh~er schools were located in Irvine, Cumnock, Ayr, and Kilmarnock, Scotland. The pilot was sponsored by Peachtree National Bank and The Bank of Coweta (Synovus Banks), Belk Department Stores, and Georgia Power. The Scottish schools were sponsored by The Royal Bank of Scotland and Marks, and Spencer Department Stores. United Parcel the official shipper for the pilot, assists the students in international export- Video conferencing is made possible by Georgia Statewide and Academic and Medical System (GSAMS) and British Telecom.
The sponsors in both Scotland and Georgia provided funding to ensure the success of the pilot program. The Georgia Council on Economic Education is the fiscal agent for all donated funds and oversees the project regarding economic education issues. Junior Achievement, Georgia, is a collaborating sponsor assisting with curriculum and ~aining. Entering year two the program added 20 new school companies. The long term goal of the Achievers International program is to develop a better prepared workforce equipped with the necessary skills to fully participate in the global economy.
