GBE Foundation - Helping Young Talent

Transcript

1. HELPING YOUNG TALENT 2015
2. SUMMARY Our Mission Achievements to Date Future Plans GBE Foundation is a non-profit organization that helps young talented students from Central Europe to fulfill their dreams – in education, athletics, performing arts, and cultural discovery We have found, selected, supported and sponsored five talented students in four years, thus far to study at high schools in the United States We are currently looking to expand across Slovakia and Czech Republic to create a regional non-profit organization and network of talent-seekers and supporters 2
3. GBE finds underprivileged talents in local high schools and gives them a chance to study abroad THESIS The Central European region is teeming with young talent – socially aware, ambitious teenagers that are highly capable in science, the arts, and athletics • The last two years of high school is a crucial period when local students in the region decide their future careers. • A lack of flexibility in the local university educational systems makes it difficult to reverse course once they enter college. As a result, talents go undiscovered and fail to progress Outside major metro areas (Prague, Bratislava), students often lack the necessary tools to make the best choices and compete at the top schools worldwide: • Financial resources • Information Attending high school abroad is a great cost effective tool to kick-start young talent by: • Improving foreign language • Educating on global educational systems and cultures – a true eye opener • Gaining exposure to top university recruiters/coaches – a chance to change lives 3
4. FOUNDERS • Alumnus of Gymnázium in Ružomberok, Slovakia (2000) • Graduated from University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA majoring in business - finance and international business (2005); MBA from Wharton Business School, University of Pennsylvania (2013) • Worked at JPMorgan Chase in New York (2005-07); Virgin Green Fund in London, UK (2007-11), a VC fund backed by Sir Richard Branson investing in renewables and resource efficiency • Since 2013, Managing Director and Portfolio Manager at Presidio Partners (formerly CMEA Capital), a venture capital fund in San Francisco investing in technology start-ups in IT, biotech and energy • Peter’s job is to take risks on talented people; he brings his passion to the non-profit world, as well • Alumnus of Gymnázium in Ružomberok and Fitch High School, Youngstown, Ohio, USA (2000) • Graduated from Oberlin College, OH, USA majoring in economics (2004); graduated from Cambridge University, UK (2010) – Master’s in Finance • Worked at Lehman Brothers in New York (2004-06); IFC, investment arm of the World Bank in Washington, D.C. and Istanbul, Turkey (2006-10) • Now working at InfraMed, a private equity fund investing in infrastructure projects in emerging markets with focus on Middle East and North Africa • Marián has made large-scale investments in frontier / emerging markets including Pakistan, Jordan, Egypt, Turkey, Kenya, Nigeria, etc. Currently lives in France Peter Gajdoš Marián Boček 4
5. FOUNDERS’ PERSONAL STORIES Lack of Resources Help of Others Desire to Give Back Many underprivileged Slovak and Czech students abroad have similar stories – without the help of others and a lucky break, dreams would not be fulfilled. It is now our turn to be the “angel investors” in local communities and help young talents We and our families endured financial hardship: • Peter’s mother had to take out a $1,000 bank loan (4x her monthly salary at that time) for his first flight ever, and pocket money to move to a college in the US back in 2001 • Peter started out washing dishes during his first college year to fund his expenses • Marián’s parents had to sell their car to pay for his study abroad at a US high school in 1999 We were both incredibly lucky to get into the universities of our dreams. Along the way, we had the tremendous help of teachers, mentors, families, friends around the world: • Peter’s future US coach drove 14 hours just to see him play soccer in Bratislava. Although the coach had no scholarships left, he convinced a small college in Kentucky to give Peter a chance • Marián’s future tennis coach showed up at Ohio tennis championships and convinced him at the last minute not to go back to Slovakia but study at Oberlin We started the non-profit effort as eager 25-year olds back in 2007. Wanted to give back to the local community • The message and scope of the effort is outgrowing our original plans and inspires others to help as well Note: we define “underprivileged” as any household with annual income below $35,000. 90%+ households outside major metro areas in Slovakia and Czech Republic and 65%+ households in metro areas (Prague, Bratislava) meet these criteria. At these levels, local families have no chance to sponsor their children’s education abroad unless their parents take out a major loan 5
6. ACHIEVEMENTS TO DATE • Selected and sponsored at least five students in four years. Three have successfully completed the program, at least two (possibly three) are preparing to go to the US in 2015/16, pending financial assistance • All three alumni are successful young professionals / university students who are now actively contributing money and time to GBE Foundation • Founders invested c.$30,000 of own capital into the effort to date • Received funding commitments from six external parties (program alumni + friends & family) to date • Created a Slovak non-profit legal entity: “občianske združenie” Considering charity registrations abroad to appeal to a wider donors pool • Created partnership with AISE-AKV student agency to place students in the US schools and families • Commenced a reach-out program to create a regional network of “angels” who would select and sponsor talents in their specific regions and schools 6
7. ALUMNI PROFILES Zuzana Petrová Terézia Jarošová Zuzana Sleziaková • Father - ambulance driver; mother - flower shop assistant • Talented, athletically gifted student with excellent grades • Best GPA in class at Northern High School in Durham, NC; played soccer and ran cross- country • Returned home to Slovakia; graduated from Faculty of Law at Comenius University in Bratislava with honors. Also studied at Yeditepe University in Turkey • Currently working for the Slovak government • Father - small construction company owner; mother - self-employed in beauty/cosmetics • Talented student with excellent grades and talent for singing and drama • Best GPA in class at Ashland High School in Ashland, WI; played ice hockey, sang in a gospel group, participated in drama and theater • Graduated from The Hague University in the Netherlands with the highest honors • Worked at Swiss Re; currently associate at Neulogy Ventures, a top venture capital fund in Slovakia • Father - local paper mill employee; mother - teacher • Talented student with excellent grades and heavy interest in languages • Excelled at Riverside High School in Durham, NC • Completed bachelor’s studies at University of Economics in Czech Republic; also studied at ESADE Business School in Spain; now applying to Copenhagen Business School, one of the top European business schools • Interned in Germany at Commerzbank and at Henkel with focus on marketing 7
8. ALUMNI TESTIMONIALS “Thanks to the program I gained a lot of experiences and memories which substantially formed my personality. I became more confident, met many amazing people who I will never forget. My host family in particular is dear to my heart – I’ve always felt like their own daughter. My year at a high school in the US was one of the most beautiful years of my life. I improved my English, became a better athlete and a better person. Just applying for the GBE Foundation scholarship competition was a great challenge for me. I proved in the US to myself and to others that I can achieve more than I have ever dreamed of. The beginning was of course really hard but saying goodbye was even harder. If I could, I would enter the program again and again… :-)” – Zuzana Petrová, the first program winner “Studying in US significantly increased my self-confidence and motivated me to pursue an academic degree at the university abroad… I’m really happy and proud to spread the great message further and help GBE going forward.” – Terézia Jarošová “US study abroad shaped my entire academic and professional focus. Most importantly, it opened an unbelievable number of opportunities, gave me confidence and courage to follow my dreams. I profited from the US experience during the entire college studies – both academically and professionally where I had a natural competitive edge due to being fluent in English. After my return to Europe, I was a lot more mature, self-confident and ready to rely on myself. I believe that leaving for the US in such a young age is the best thing a young person can do… In addition, I gained many friendships, unique experiences, traveled a good part of the world and learned to live in a multicultural environment. Despite the initial fear I now know that attempting to win the scholarship for US study was the best thing I could have done for my future.” – Zuzana Sleziaková 8
9. Patrik Kurilla Martin Lupták • Underprivileged student from a small village Liptovské Revúce in the mountains of Slovakia - parents work in local tourism • Traveled abroad only to neighboring countries, never been on a plane before • Currently junior at Gymnázium high school in Ružomberok. Excellent student; incredibly hard working young man managing both school and sports – gets up at 5am and comes back to his village at 8pm. • Talented soccer player who played for one of the top youth soccer clubs in Slovakia; now being recruited by minor league teams • Speaks 4 languages including Russian. Favorite books include Coelho’s The Alchemist (“story of his life”) and Dostojevskij’s Demons • Wants to study international law and work helping people with non-profits such as UNICEF • Father – electric technician; mother – works at a local labor office. Youngest of 4 brothers • Junior at Gymnázium High School in Ružomberok, Slovakia – a hard-working student with excellent grades • Talented singer and piano player with love for rock concerts; attends TED talks and tech events • Extremely interested in computers and foreign languages. Excellent English – working on Cambridge language certification (CAE). Taught himself to code in Python • Wants to study computer science and become an IT entrepreneur • Martin’s dream is to visit Silicon Valley – we are hoping to make his dream come true and trying to place him in a high school school and a host family in the San Francisco Bay Area CURRENT WINNERS 9
10. SLOVAK GRAMMAR SCHOOL RANKING – TOP 60 47 out of 60 top schools are located outside Bratislava, the only Slovak city with higher than EU average income; the only city in Slovakia reasonably well connected to the global economy. In addition, majority of students in Bratislava still do not have the financials means to travel and study abroad # TOP SLOVAK GRAMMAR SCHOOLS CITY 1 Bilingválne gymnázium Komenského 215, Sučany 2 Gymnázium Poštová 9, Košice - Staré Mesto 3 Spojená škola - Gymnázium Jura Hronca Novohradská 3, Bratislava - Ružinov 4 Gymnázium M.R.Štefanika Športová 41, Nové Mesto nad Váhom 5 Gymnázium P. J.Šafárika Ul. akademika Hronca 1, Rožňava 6 Škola pre mimoriadne nadané deti - Gymnázium Teplická 7, Bratislava - Nové Mesto 7 Gymnázium J. A. Raymana Mudroňova 20, Prešov 8 Spojená škola - Gym Dominika Tatarku 7, Poprad 9 Gymnázium A. Vrábla Mierová 5, Levice 10 Gymnázium Grösslingová 18, Bratislava - Staré Mesto 11 Gymnázium Varšavská cesta 1, Žilina 12 Gymnázium bilingválne Tomáša Ružičku 3, Žilina 13 Súkromné gymnázium Solivarská 28, Prešov 14 Evanjelické gymnázium Škultétyho 10, Košice - Staré Mesto 15 Bilingválne gymnázium Beňadická 38, Bratislava - Petržalka 16 Gymnázium Párovská 1, Nitra 17 Gymnázium ĽudovítaŠtúra 1. mája 2, Trenčín 18 Spojená škola-Gymnázium Metodova 2, Bratislava - Ružinov 19 Spojená škola-Gymnázium Komenského 10, Liptovský Mikuláš 20 Gymnázium Komenského 13, Lipany 21 Evanjelické lýceum Vranovská 2, Bratislava - Petržalka 22 Gymnázium P.Coubertina Nám. SNP 9, Piešťany 23 Gymnázium J.G.T. J.G.Tajovského 25, Banská Bystrica 24 Gymnázium J.Hollého Na hlinách 30, Trnava 25 Gymnázium Jozefa Lettricha Jozefa Lettricha 2, Martin 26 Gymnázium Matky Alexie Jesenského 4/A, Bratislava - Staré Mesto 27 Gymnázium J. Jesenského Radlinského 2, Bánovce nad Bebravou 28 Gymnázium Šrobárova 1, Košice - Staré Mesto 29 Gymnázium Konštantínova 2, Prešov 30 Gymnázium M.R. J. Kollára 2, Žiar nad Hronom y , 31 Gymnázium sv. Mikuláša Duklianska 16, Prešov 32 Gymnázium Školská 2, Dubnica nad Váhom 33 Spojená škola-Gymnázium Tilgnerova 14, Bratislava - Karlova Ves 34 Gymnázium Vazovova 6, Bratislava - Staré Mesto 35 Gymnázium Š. Moyzesa 21, Ružomberok 36 Gymnáz.V.B.Nedožerského Matice slovenskej 16, Prievidza 37 Gymnázium L.Novomeského Tomášikova 2, Bratislava - Nové Mesto 38 Gymnázium Kukučínova 1, Poprad 39 Gymnázium sv. Františka J. M. Hurbana 44, Žilina 40 Piar.gymn. J.Braneckého Palackého 4, Trenčín 41 Gymnázium Jiráskova 12, Bardejov 42 Gymnázium Bilíkova 24, Bratislava - Dúbravka 43 Gymnázium A. Bernoláka Lichnerova 69, Senec 44 SKŠ-Gymnázium sv.C.a M. Farská 19, Nitra 45 Gymnázium sv. Moniky Tarasa Ševčenka 1, Prešov 46 Gymnázium Ivana Horvátha 14, Bratislava - Ružinov 47 Gymn. sv. T. Akvinského Zbrojničná 3, Košice - Staré Mesto 48 Gymnázium B.S.T. Haličská cesta 9, Lučenec 49 Gymnázium Veľká okružná 22, Žilina 50 Gymnázium sv.koš.mučen. Čordákova 50, Košice - Sídlisko KVP 51 Gymnázium J. M. Hurbana 17. novembra 1296, Čadca 52 Gymnázium Á. Vámberyho Nám. sv. Štefana 4, Dunajská Streda 53 Gymnáz. gen. L. Svobodu Komenského 4, Humenné 54 Gymnázium sv. F. Assis. Kláštorská 24, Levoča 55 Gymnázium Pavla Horova Masarykova 1, Michalovce 56 Gymnázium Park mládeže 5, Košice - Sever 57 Gymnázium J. Fándlyho Školská 3, Šaľa 58 Gymnázium Duchnovičova 13, Medzilaborce 59 Gymn. P. O.Hviezdoslava Hviezdoslavova 20, Kežmarok 60 Gymnázium V.Paulinyho T Malá hora 3, Martin Since we are able to find excellent, motivated talents in Ružomberok, a small city in northern Slovakia, how many underprivileged talents walk undiscovered, unsupported, uninformed in other top schools? Source: INEKO - 2014 10
11. EXPANSION PLANS – NEXT 18 MONTHS Legal Finance Organization / HR • Complete Slovak and Czech entity forming process to allow for tax deductible contributions starting in 2016 • Commence US charitable 501(c)(3) organization establishment (similar structure to be considered for European donors) • Hire external legal and accounting for continued operation • Raise additional $5.5K via friends & family fundraising in the next 2 weeks to secure study abroad for at least 2 students this year and complete initial legal framework • Raise at least $100K by H1 2016 to finish organizational establishment and create a competition network for at least 10 schools • Raise $1m+ in the long term to create a fully fledged, well funded non-profit organization with more than 30 schools participating across Slovakia and Czech Republic • Hire 1 permanent / part-time staff to manage the organization growth, high school competitions and partnerships • Set up board of trustees / advisors • Partner with additional student placement agencies besides AISE-AKV • Explore partnerships with other educational non-profits in the region and US schools 11
12. BUDGET OVERVIEW COSTS: • Student agency and gov’t fees: $7,500 • Return airplane ticket: $1,000 • Subtotal $8,500 • x 2 students • Total costs for 2 students $17,000 • Legal and admin $3,000 • Total 2015 budget $20,000 FUNDS: • Founders and alumni $10,500 • Friends & family commitments $4,000 • Looking for additional funding $5,500 2015 BUDGET 2016 BUDGET COSTS: • Student agency and gov’t fees: $8,000 • Return airplane ticket: $1,000 • Subtotal $9,000 • x 10 students • Total costs for 10 students $90,000 • Legal and admin $10,000 • Total 2016 budget $100,000 FUNDS: • Founders and alumni $10,000 • Friends & family commitments TBD • Additional funding needed $90,000 Note: room & board is provided by a US host family. Partner student agency is responsible for finding a host family, securing visa, insurance and overall trip logistics. GBE Foundation strives to assist with host family placement to mitigate inherent risks and improve scholarship student experience 12
13. HOW CAN YOU HELP? • Sponsor the current crop of selected students for 2015-16 • Support your own competition / talent search at your school for 2016/17 and beyond • Provide capital, sponsor student’s stay abroad (~$8,500/year) • Help find an appropriate school abroad • Help find an appropriate host family abroad – key risk that will mitigate many other issues • Provide mentorship on key subjects, exams (SAT, ACT, TOEFL, etc.) needed to a) excel in school; b) graduate on time; c) gain university scholarships/loans at top universities in the US or Europe • Provide moral support and practical advice during tough times • Be a role model for talented students! 13
14. APPENDIX 14
15. ALUMNI PHOTOS 15
16. KEY RISKS • Family misfit • Happened to one GBE student • Mitigant: student changed family mid-year; student agency will help • School misfit • Happened to one GBE student • Mitigant: student adjusted curriculum, extracurricular activities and fought through - builds resilience and character • Student’s parents cancel attendance in the program • Happened to one GBE student • Mitigant: designate a substitute replacement / reallocate resources • Student gets home sick and wants to return • Always happens • Mitigant: supportive host family, mentors, student agency • Student gets into legal trouble • Not happened, yet, but it will • Mitigant: pick the best candidates with the highest chance of success 16
17. FAQ Why don’t you sponsor students at universities? • Universities cost $50K+ per year; a $1m+ immediate pool of capital needed to make an impact. Sponsoring participation in US high schools is a low cost, high risk-high reward talent strategy Why don’t you send students to Europe instead of the US? • High school students can apply through Erasmus for an exchange within the EU – no need to replicate a functioning support system Why don’t you just raise institutional money now? • Institutional money leverages financial resources, but does not replace the direct selection, investment, and mentorship model. We will take institutional money a) provided it will fit into the direct sponsorship mission; b) upon building further track record, legal framework and partnerships 17
18. CONTACT INFORMATION Peter Gajdoš petergajdos@yahoo.com Marián Boček bocekmarian@yahoo.com 18