2024 Award Recipient
MasonArditi
Project Youth Entrepreneurship Association
Project Youth Entrepreneurship Association
When Mason saw his family experiencing financial hardship, he became determined to master finance. But he found that financial education was missing from his high school curriculum. Undeterred, Mason took it upon himself to enroll in a community college course where he discovered that business can be a tool for empowerment.
Eager to share what he was learning with his peers, Mason used the textbook from his college course to start a business club at his Santa Monica High School. As the only financial literacy offering for a school of 3,500 students, Mason’s club quickly grew to over 100 members and became the largest club on campus.
By the end of 2022, he established the Youth Entrepreneurship Association (YEA) as a nonprofit, whose mission is to empower underserved youth through entrepreneurship.
YEA has inspired more than 300 students to shape their financial destinies through after-school business clubs, accelerator programs, and the Teenpreneurship summer program. These students have raised close to $25,000 in funds to sustain their businesses.
Youth Entrepreneurship Association (YEA) works to ignite a passion for financial literacy and entrepreneurship among underserved teens, providing them with tools and knowledge to turn their ambitions into action. Through financial education and entrepreneurial resources, YEA empowers the next generation to build a future of economic independence and innovative leadership. To date, YEA has served 300+ students across 7 locations, and helped launch 16 student businesses. Now, YEA is opening more than 20 new club chapters where students are spreading financial literacy education through their communities.
