UNE faculty, business executive board mentor high schoolers in regional workforce development challenge

Students from multiple high schools in southern Maine gathered on April 2 to compete at the University of New England in the Junior Achievement of Maine’s (JA Maine) Titan Challenge, and several teams were mentored by faculty in UNE’s College of Business — including the winning team in the southern Maine region, who received guidance from Penny Maier Guyton, MBA, an assistant teaching professor in UNE’s business college.

Each spring, the JA Titan Challenge is held at nine host sites across the state where high school students are called on to exercise their knowledge of business, finance, and entrepreneurship following instruction in JA Maine’s five-week, experiential-learning course in business economics. 

The course and subsequent competition aim to equip high school students with the skills, confidence, and connections they need to succeed — serving as a viable pipeline for workforce development in Maine’s many industries. Each year, over 300 students across the state gain hands-on lessons and exposure to Maine’s businesses, network building, and STEM-aligned curriculum through JA Maine. 

At UNE on April 2, students from southern Maine high schools gained real-world learning experiences in business fields such as entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and research and development in order to help them better navigate future career opportunities, strengthen Maine’s workforce, and rise as leaders in their communities. 

In a simulated test held in UNE’s Campus Center, students were charged with growing the profitability of a cell phone company, while they worked with mentors, like Guyton, who provided guidance on how business owners and managers problem-solve through challenges to grow a business. 

The JA Challenge drew 14 business leaders from across Maine to help critique and mentor the students in profit equations, business outcomes, budgeting, corporate social responsibility, and more as they evaluate the students’ performance. Among them were four from UNE’s business faculty: Guyton; Connor Blake, MBA, director of UNE’s Center for Sport and Business Innovation; Kevin Sanborn, MBA, entrepreneur-in-residence in the Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship; and Tara Konya, Ph.D., director of UNE’s online Master of Business Administration and the Business Graduate Program.

In addition, two members of UNE College of Business Executive Advisory Board volunteered their day to help mentor at the JA Challenge: Jen Consalvo, MBA, co-founder and co-CEO of  Established, a strategic marketing and events firm, and Sean Miller, co-founder of multiple ventures, including Rarebreed Veterinary Partners, which earned him Ernst & Young’s 2023 Entrepreneur of the Year for the Northeast.

The day-long event included lunch in the Danielle N. Ripich Commons with the UNE faculty, providing students with real-world exposure to a college campus and university life and the chance to build their networks by collaborating with the JA Maine mentors.

UNE’s partnership with the JA Titan Challenge illustrates its role in helping to develop Maine’s workforce at a time when the state faces a critical workforce shortage. It also helps inspire high school students to pursue business degrees in academia.

The relationships between UNE, JA Maine, and the Biddeford School System also illustrates how universities can help equip students with real-world experiences even before they consider a college degree. 

Michelle Anderson, president and CEO of Junior Achievement of Maine, said having UNE’s College of Business faculty participate as mentors in this year’s JA Titan Challenge was meaningful for the high school students.

“UNE’s engagement brought real‑world insight, energy, and mentorship into the experience — taking learning beyond the classroom and helping students see how their skills and ideas apply in real business settings,” Anderson said. “Partnerships like this are essential to preparing young people for future success, and we’re grateful for UNE’s commitment to supporting JA Maine, the next generation of leaders here in Maine.”