UPDATE: Read the AJC article here.
Congratulations to a team from Douglass High that recently won national title in the Capitol Hill Challenge (CHC)! The CHC is a special edition of the SIFMA Foundation’s educational program, The Stock Market Game (SMG), which shares with members of Congress real-time examples of students benefiting from the program in their respective district of the state. (SIFMA is the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association.)
According to the team’s coach, Jill Beracki, 156 teachers from across the United States were invited to participate. Douglass won out over teams from 44 states and the District of Columbia. The victory earned Beracki and her five students an all-expenses paid trip to Washington, D.C., on June 10-11 to meet Congressman John Lewis.
The winning students were sophomore Brandon Dykes and juniors Jeremy Hughes, Tydious Mitchell, Steven Walker and Camille Williams. They are all part of Douglass’ Business and Entrepreneurship small learning community. The academy leader is Mary Harris.
Here’s how the Stock Market Game works, according to Beracki: “You start with a hypothetical $100,000 and set up a virtual investment portfolio on line. Students can purchase shares in stocks, bonds and mutual funds. In the Spring of 2000, Douglass won the state championship. The awards ceremony was attended by me, my students, [APS Deputy Superintendent for Curriculum and Instruction] Kathy Augustine and then-principal, Dr. Samuel Hill. I also received a one-week, all-expenses paid trip to Wall Street that summer.” Also according to Beracki, Douglass has received two regional trophies since then, leading to his year’s Capitol Hill Challenge. “I am very proud of them and extremely excited about this opportunity,” Beracki said.
