Whiz Kid: Nicolas Delporte Speaks at Middle School Center Groundbreaking

The Junior Achievement of Georgia broke ground on its new financial literacy center on Jan. 9, and one Sutton Middle School seventh-grader delivered a riveting speech at the ceremony about what the center will mean to him.

Junior Achievement of Georgia, in partnership with the Chick-fil-A Foundation, Atlanta Public Schools, DeKalb County Schools and Fulton County Schools plan to open the Junior Achievement’s Chick-fil-A Foundation Discovery Center, a state-of-the-art financial literacy and career readiness facility which will be available to middle school students in September 2013.

Nicolas Delporte, a seventh-grader at Sutton, was one of the main speakers at the groundbreaking ceremony.

Below is a transcript of the speech he delivered:

“Good morning, everyone. I am a seventh-grade student at Sutton Middle School and a member of Junior Achievement Means Success (JAMS).

Thanks to this program, I have had opportunities to discover what my professional future could be. I  have walked on college campuses and sat in their classrooms. I visited businesses to see how companies operate. At the end of my sixth grade, I presented with my classmates a vision to develop a business plan for an application. These experiences combined with the support from my teachers, JA [Junior Achievement] and my parents have all helped me to continue developing the skills, knowledge, motivation and confidence to believe in my future.

I know that that one day I can expect to become a business leader. This program has helped me see and understand that opportunities are available. I am happy to know that this Center [JA Chick-fil-A Foundation Discovery Center] will give my peers, as well as future students, the same opportunities and resources, some which may not have been available before today.

Since this [JA Chick-fil-A Foundation Discovery Center] is open to all, I know that every student will look forward to his or her experience at JA BizTown® or JA Finance Park®.

This is the best opportunity for us [students] to get an idea of what our professional futures can be made of. Just imagine, students who are young as 11 [years old] and will one day become the leader of a Fortune 500 company. Now that is a day that sticks with you forever.

Again, thank you all for supporting this program. Thank you for believing in the students of Atlanta. I am proud to represent Atlanta’s next generation of leaders, and I look forward to showing you the difference your support can make for each and every one of us.”