$1,000,000aire Blueprints Jr - Business Magazine For Kids

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ---- WINTER 2007

What if elementary schools took a lesson from top business schools, and encouraged young students to "try on" career choices and practice, idea-to-implementation, entrepreneurship as part of their classroom experiences?

Lynn Kenner doesn't just hope to see the "real world" of business in every elementary classroom. She's determined to make it happen.

Partnering with Millionaire Blueprints, a national "how-to-succeed" magazine for entrepreneurs, Kenner, who is founder and executive director of Children's University, Arlington, Texas, and the magazine's publisher/executive editor Tom Spinks, have launched Millionaire Blueprints Junior, a lively, activity-packed business magazine for kids. Earmarked for fourth-, fifth- and sixth-grade students, the magazine will be sold through school subscriptions and distributed by teachers in the classroom.

The first issue of Millionaire Blueprints Jr. was mailed to 10,000 schools in every state on August 1, 2006. Its purpose is two-fold: first, to offer students across the country an entertaining, step-by-step informational look at successful, young entrepreneurs and basic business concepts; and, second, to provide elementary school teachers and curriculum coordinators an opportunity to adapt Kenner's methods and knowledge to their own curriculum.

Kenner's mission comes from personal experience. An education innovator and career educator/administrator, Kenner has spent the last decade building a curriculum of business electives for students at her own school--Children's University, a private elementary with a focus on advanced programming for gifted and talented students in Arlington, Texas. She founded the school, serves as its executive director, and creates imaginative learning opportunities and unique teaching environments on the seven-acre campus.

Spinks founded Millionaire Blueprints Magazine in 2004, and premiered its five-state test issue in January, 2005. "The magazine’s newsstand sales reached close to 62 percent after the test," Spinks says, "in an industry where 38 percent is the norm.” Time Warner, the world’s largest publishing group, distributes Millionaire Blueprints, which debuted nationally in April, 2005. Spinks envisioned the magazine as a unique resource for entrepreneurs, with detailed feature stories and step-by-step instructions for individual success. "What people need is a blueprint for their idea or business," he says. "In every feature, we reveal a set of guidelines they can follow, gleaned from the experiences of others who have already been there and who know what works and what doesn’t work.”

Kenner believes integrating an elementary curriculum with "real-world," hands-on, age-appropriate business activities is essential. "In two words," she says, "my goal is academic enrichment. We enrich our academic curriculum with creativity and an interdisciplinary approach. We encourage and energize our faculty. We provide the best facilities and use cutting-edge technology. Why shouldn't we consider developing an introduction to business when children are ready to imagine themselves in different careers or making products and selling them?" She believes her business basics curriculum works for the same reason every young child builds a lemonade stand or wants to help in the family's garage sale. "Children at this age are keen on learning a bit about everything," she says. "Nothing fascinates a 10-year-old like exploring his or her future career and finding out what makes the grown-up world of business tick."

Millionaire Blueprints Jr. Managing Editor Kimberly Burleson says the new venture is a perfect fit. "When we got acquainted with Lynn and learned of her innovation and success at Children's University, we immediately began researching whether there were any business magazines for teachers or young people," Burleson says. "We knew there were amazing stories about young entrepreneurs, and we wanted to highlight them, along with elements of business basics in a classroom setting." The partnership builds on Millionaire Blueprints signature style--a step-by-step guide to business success revealed through features, testimonial 'blueprints' and accessible resource information from entrepreneurs across the country.

"More than any other generation, today's young children need to plan and be prepared for several careers and business ventures over a lifetime," Kenner says. "To be ready for the unprecedented challenges and opportunities they'll face as young adults, these kids will need broad-based knowledge, a greater variety of skills and a finely tuned entrepreneurial instinct to achieve satisfaction and success in their work life."