After spotting a story about a 15-year old entrepreneur last week on the local news, 5th grade CDS teacher, Mrs. Monty, was so impressed she knew she needed to get her in front of our fifth graders. Mrs. Monty quickly reached out to the entire fifth-grade team to see if they would be able to join the Zoom, and they all eagerly agreed that this was too amazing an opportunity to miss! It just so happened that on Monday, February 7th our fifth graders were beginning the first day of their business unit. 

Mrs. Monty reached out to Joelle Hinds, the mastermind behind Slay Bay Beauty, and asked her if she would be interested in talking to the students at CDS. Joelle agreed and was zoomed into the classroom Monday morning. She spoke to the entire fifth grade about how she came up with the idea for her products, what tools she used to make it happen, and how the business is going. The entire fifth grade class heard firsthand about how Joelle started the Slay Bay Beauty company when she was just 14 years old because she couldn't find a product that would meet her needs. Born with eczema, she hated wearing shorts because she didn't like the dark marks on her legs. With an entrepreneurial spirit Joelle spent time researching formulas, working on a business plan, and creating products to not only help her, but others, feel confident in their own skin.

Our fifth graders got to hear about how Joelle has navigated the business world, ask her questions about what her process was, and even how she subscribes to the theory "Look Good, Feel Good, Do Good." Our students were so inspired to hear from an entrepreneur, just a couple of years older than them, about how she took her dream to reality with hard work and an entrepreneurial spirit. 

Thank you to Slay Bay Beauty CEO, Joelle Hinds, for taking time to speak to our eager 5th graders. Thank you to our 5th grade teachers for facilitating this Zoom session and always searching for ways to inspire their students.