What to know
- The non-profit, started by a high school junior, offers free entrepreneurship workshops to students in grades 5-8 across Richmond Hill.
- Teens design and teach the workshops, making the lessons relatable and tailored to younger students’ interests and experiences.
- The initiative aims to build confidence, creativity, and real-world problem-solving skills in participants, preparing them for future leadership.
- Since launching, the program has reached over 30 students and is expanding to include mentorship opportunities and community projects.
Youth teaches youth: A Richmond Hill Grade 11 student is inspiring the next generation by running a nonprofit that brings entrepreneurship lessons to students in Grades 5 through 8.
Grade 11 student Murad Nalbandian wanted entrepreneurship classes after owning businesses since Grade 4.
‘I never had the education to advance’: Why Murad Nalbandian launched the nonprofit
“In Grade 4, I would do something like a lemonade stand. As I got older, I had a cologne business. But eventually, I was never really able to scale it; I never had the education to advance in this or mentorship,” Nalbandian told Now Toronto.
So, he decided to launch North Star Youth Entrepreneurial Foundation (NYSEF), a non-profit that provides mentorship to his ambitious peers.
Nalbandian ran his first workshop in May and received positive feedback, with students feeling confident enough to come up with a business idea.
Now, he’s in the process of incorporating as a registered Ontario non-profit and has launched a micro-grant program that gives $300 to $700 to start-up student-owned businesses.
Nalbandian hopes the grant will support costs, marketing and advertising for these startups.
“What I’ve heard from my friends is the main reason they don’t want to start the business is that buying the materials can be expensive, even for simple jobs like car detailing or window cleaning,” he shared.
Despite his young age, Nalbandian hopes to spark the next generation of entrepreneurs.
“My younger self would be so happy because they will know what I never knew… It sparks a conversation, and it sparks that mindset, and that’s the end goal,” he explained.
“I’m not saying all of these students I reach and have these workshops with are gonna start their own business or gonna be billionaires, but it’s just the fact that I can go to these students and present what we do as a nonprofit, and it sparks that creativity in them,” Nalbandian added.
Entrepreneurship, leadership, financial literacy: Key skills students learn in the program
Nalbandian hopes students who join his program develop entrepreneurship, leadership, and financial literacy skills.
From presenting to large groups and speaking confidently to understanding the basics of spending, investing, and saving, Nalbandian hopes to prepare youth with skills that help in “the real world.”
Looking ahead, Nalbandian plans to expand to more schools across York Region.
“[I hope to] build out a full program that takes kids from their first taste of entrepreneurship in Grade 3, all the way through to actually running a funded business in high school,” he explained.
From being a student himself to teaching younger kids, he advises anyone interested in entrepreneurship to believe in themselves.
“Even though I’m young, I’ve been aware that you have to believe in yourself before your company can succeed,” Nalbandian said.
