2005 Scholarship Reserve Fund Contribution

In 2004 the York Jaycees scholarship reserve fund was dissolved. The monies were distributed to two very worthy local non-profit agencies in the York community: Susan P. Byrnes Health Education Center and Junior Achievement Exchange City. Each agency received a $4,000 check at the York Jaycees general membership meeting in January 2005.

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Dana Miller receiving for the Susan P. Byrnes Health Education Center

Lyn Buckler-Bergdoll receiving for Junior Achievement Exchange City

The Byrnes HEC opened in 1995, born from the conviction that quality education is the key to a healthier community. As an organization built by the community for the community, the Byrnes HEC educates and inspires people of all ages to make healthy lifestyle choices. They do this by instilling an appreciation of the intricacies of life and by giving students the knowledge and skills they need to make healthy decisions. Since opening, the Center has educated over 400,000 visitors of all ages from across the region.

The Byrnes HEC is located in a restored automobile dealership, renovated as part of a community revitalization effort. Where once there was an auto service department, there are now five unique, state-of-the-art “teaching theaters” for health education: Nutrition & Fitness Teaching Theater, Substance Use & Abuse Teaching Theater, General Health Teaching Theater, Family Living/Life Begins Teaching Theater, and the Body Shop Teaching Theater. These theaters house multi-media exhibits, larger-than-life models, and light-animated displays that greatly enhance the learning experience. The interactive theaters were uniquely designed to allow each participant to learn through “seeing, hearing, and doing.”

Exchange City is an innovative program providing 5th and 6th grade students with a realistic opportunity to experience first-hand how basic economic concepts are used in the real world. Students complete a six-week classroom curriculum on economics, civics, and job preparation. They then visit the Exchange City laboratory to participate in a day-long simulation, assuming the roles of business owners, employees, consumers, and government officials.

In Exchange City, students operate the retail shops, bank, post office, broadcast center, snack shop, newspaper, and city hall - all networked with state-of-the-art technology. By doing so, they learn first-hand what it takes to create a business, produce a newspaper, supervise employees, and hold elected office, while personally earning and managing money. Afterward, students evaluate and reflect on their experience during a one-week follow-up. The Exchange City curriculum is correlated to Pennsylvania academic standards in math, language arts, social studies, civics, and technology.