[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 188 (Friday, November 22, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1502-E1503]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                21ST CENTURY YOUTH ENTREPRENEURSHIP ACT

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. GRACE MENG

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Friday, November 22, 2019

  Ms. MENG. Madam Speaker, this week is Global Entrepreneurship Week--a 
time to recognize the importance of entrepreneurship in our communities 
and economy. Entrepreneurship kindles the spark of creativity and 
ingenuity that has been such a cornerstone of our economy. Fostering 
more entrepreneurs is also a poverty alleviation solution. Studies 
showed that for every one-percentage point increase in the rate of 
entrepreneurship in a state, there is a two-percentage point decrease 
in the poverty rate.
  Furthermore, additional studies show that two-thirds of adults 
worldwide are financially illiterate while 57 percent of U.S. adults 
overall are financially literate--ranking the U.S. 14th in the world in 
financial literacy. Only 17 states require high school students to take 
a course in personal finance, and students without a financial 
education are more likely to have low credit scores and other financial 
problems.
  Madam Speaker, we already know that entrepreneurship requires 
creative problem-solving skills, leadership, teamwork, and 
adaptability, which are skills necessary for the 21st century 
workforce. Forty percent of American middle and high school students 
say they plan to start a business, and 29 percent said they planned to 
invent something that will change the world. These rates increase 
significantly for students who participate in entrepreneurship 
programs.
  That is why I will be introducing the 21st Century Youth 
Entrepreneurship Act--to create a pathway to empower our youth to 
become next generation of leaders and innovators through the inclusion 
of entrepreneurship programs within our K-12 public school system, 
community colleges, libraries, and other community spaces.
  Specifically, the 21st Century Youth Entrepreneurship Act would:
  Amend Title IV of ESEA to allow for local and state educational 
agencies to include entrepreneurship programs, financial literacy 
programs, and leadership programs within existing curricula, utilizing 
pre-existing funds; and
  Amend the Perkins Career and Technical Education Act to explicitly 
include ``entrepreneurship education programs'' as an allowable use of 
funds.

[[Page E1503]]

  Bringing entrepreneurship into places such as schools provide youth a 
safe space to encourage divergent thinking, learning from failure, 
explore reiterative processes, gain financial literacy, and learn to 
communicate new ideas. Entrepreneurial thinkers can turn problems into 
business opportunities and stay in or return to their communities, 
generating employment and enlarging the local tax base. The development 
of an entrepreneurial mindset in youth will help lead to an empowered 
society.
  Madam Speaker, as I urge my colleagues in the House of 
Representatives to recognize Global Entrepreneurship, I urge support of 
the 21st Century Youth Entrepreneurship Act. Ultimately, entrepreneurs 
are the backbone of American society; they drive innovation, job 
creation, and national economic growth. And entrepreneurship programs 
in our schools will empower our youth to strengthen our nation by 
cultivating their entrepreneurial spirit.

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