The Junior Achievement Stock Market Challenge introduces learners to the stock market. Participants are introduced to the fundamentals of stocks, the impact of world events on the stock market, long-term investing, and how investors make decisions to diversify portfolios. Students applied their learning in a simulated stock market environment and are tasked in making decisions about a set of fictional stocks and interpret current events and trends in the market.

“I am honored to have won this year’s JStock Market Challenge, and my thanks goes out to Mrs. Schultze, my personal finance and business teacher, and Junior Achievement, for hosting the event,” Johnson said. “This year’s challenge had some very tough competition, with second and third place not far behind me, but my key to winning was making large, and smart investments in stocks that showed promise. Winning wasn’t the only take away from this experience though — recognizing the power of investment was another, and I hope to apply this realization to my life, in the future.”

Johnson and top 10 finishers Alex Pashkow, Troy Keefe, and Evan Maloney participated through Amy Schultze’s JCC College Connections Personal Finance. Beginning with an initial portfolio of $500,000, students demonstrated impressive financial skill as they grew their investments throughout the 12-day experience.

Johnson’s first-place finish came with a “net worth” of $797,750.44 and a “Return on Investment” of +59.55%. Pashkow finished in fifth place with $708,225.18 and a 41.64% ROI, Keefe finished in seventh place with $656,093.87 and a 31.62% ROI, and Maloney finished in ninth place with $647,974.05 and a 29.59% ROI.

Jacob Johnson is pictured.

Five hundred students from 13 schools in the Western New York region participated. Johnson participated as a student in Amy Schultze’s JCC College Connections Personal Finance course.

“In this course, students investigate stock market concepts before they begin the Stock Market Challenge, such as: earnings per share, price earnings ratio, average rate of returns, and other investment fundamentals,” Schultze said. “Providing students with a solid foundation in personal finance and business development will enable them to focus on long term financial planning and investment strategies.”

Johnson now will move on and compete in a live stock market challenge in Buffalo in the spring.