Students Mentor Area Children Through “Lemonade Day”

For some children, starting a lemonade stand is a rite of passage. For others, the front yard, “$.50 a glass” signs are part of American culture. For about a dozen students at Georgetown University’s McDonough School of Business, the simple lemonade stand has become a unique opportunity to mentor local children.

College students from all over the District – including from Georgetown – spread the entrepreneurial spirit in D.C. on April 23 as part of Lemonade Day, a national, community-driven program. The Georgetown students mentored students at Washington Global Public Charter School and Georgetown Day School for two weeks prior to the event, and they also helped the children run their lemonade stands.

“I wanted to be involved because I’m passionate about empowering youth from all backgrounds to realize their entrepreneurial potential,” said Vanessa Philips, a freshman in Georgetown’s McDonough School of Business. “As a mentor, I was able to set goals and plans with these young entrepreneurs and help bring them to fruition.”

In addition to encouraging active growth and learning through business, Lemonade Day aligns with Georgetown’s Jesuit principle of being men and women for others.

“One of the reasons I chose to come to Georgetown was the values that the university promotes,” she said. “Lemonade Day is the perfect example of an expression of those values. It gives me a volunteering outlet that aligns with my passions. I was able to take time to travel to a school off campus and get to know kids I never would have otherwise met. Their enthusiasm was infectious. I was happy to teach them about entrepreneurship because it can serve them for the rest of their lives.”

Lemonade Day started in Houston in 2007 as a way for parents and teachers to improve financial literacy and teach entrepreneurial skills to young, budding business leaders. This is the third year that Georgetown McDonough has participated in the program.