JA BizTown educational program gets new name

JA BizTown, a simulated community in Tampa, has been a learning experience for elementary students in Hillsborough, Pasco, Polk and Sarasota counties for 20 years. 

Coinciding with the anniversary, Junior Achievement of Tampa Bay leaders have chosen to rename it Muma BizTown – in honor of long-time supporters Pam and Les Muma. The change was made Jan. 21. 

JA of Tampa Bay, which creates programs to support and empower students within 12 counties, developed Muma BizTown to introduce children to a real-world setting. Participants spend one day at the mock city and get to become workers and citizens. 

One student is even elected mayor.

Companies have a presence at the site as well. Partners include Fifth Third Bank, iHeartMedia, The UPS Store, TECO Energy, The Florida Aquarium and Tampa General Hospital. 

Young attendees prepare for the experience in advance. They work with their teachers to learn about how to run a business. The children even go through a process where they have to interview for the different available jobs. 

Once they are at Muma BizTown, the participants work, get paid and even get to “purchase” Tampa Bay Lightning, Rays and Buccaneers merchandise. 

About 20,000 students spend time at Muma BizTown per year, said JA of Tampa Bay vice president of community and government affairs Olivier Millour. Over 300,000 children have been able to partake in the experience since launching the program. 

The goal is to “inspire them to start thinking critically and purposefully about how they can align what they are learning at school and their interests to the kinds of careers that they might want in the future.” 

Rebranding to Muma BizTown was an evolution. The experience, which is located at the Bill Poe Family Junior Achievement Campus, was previously known as JA BizTown presented by Pam and Les Muma.  

“A family that has been so critical to not only the construction of the building and the launching of BizTown, but also the ongoing sustaining of BizTown has been the Muma family,” Millour said. “They were with us from the beginning.” 

The Mumas have offered a $5 million planned gift and $2 to 3 million in operational support. 

“We truly believe in Junior Achievement’s mission and the power of experiential learning to change lives,” said Pam Muma in a prepared statement. “After so many years, we’ve seen firsthand how BizTown, along with their other impactful education programs, sparks confidence and possibility. We look forward to what’s ahead for students.”  

To mark the 20th anniversary of Muma BizTown, JA of Tampa Bay has been hard at work recognizing the partner companies that have played a key role in the experience. 

“All of the organizations that are represented are not only an integral part of the simulation in what the students work on,” Millour explained, “but they’re also providing financial resources that are crucial for our operations.” 

This has led to the creation of partner tribute days – where leaders from each company get to visit and be honored by JA representatives and students. An executive swears in the mayor of BizTown as well.  

The history of Muma BizTown has a unique Pinellas County connection, he explained. Enterprise Village, which offers a similar experience for students, was developed by the Pinellas Education Foundation in 1989.

Gus Stavros, the founding chairman of the Pinellas Education Foundation, was also a Junior Achievement of Tampa Bay benefactor. He believed that providing a real-world experience to students in Hillsborough County was just as important. 

Eventually a deal was made between Junior Achievement USA and the Pinellas Education Foundation where JA “essentially acquired the rights” to the Enterprise Village model, Millour said. As part of the agreement, the Pinellas Education Foundation has access to “all research and development and all new enhancements” from the BizTown experience. 

The concept would spread. There are more than 30 BizTown locations around the country. “It’s one of those reminders of just how innovative the Tampa Bay community and region is,” he added.

A Spirit of Achievement event, which will be led by students, is scheduled March 5 at the JW Marriott Tampa Water Street. The theme is Muma BizTown’s 20th anniversary. Tickets are available at this link. 

Junior Achievement of Tampa Bay website