What happens when 21 students, four schools and one big class business idea come together?
A whole lot of learning. And probably a few challenges along the way. The Gateway CEO Class of 2027 is actively working toward launching their class business in early December. This hands-on experience will challenge them to develop a business plan, market an event, work through logistics, manage registrations and sponsorships, explore additional revenue streams and ultimately bring a great community event to life.
And the stakes are real.
The students are working to generate seed money for their second-semester individual businesses, reinvest in the Gateway CEO program and create a well-earned work-hard/play-hard experience at the end of the school year. That's a lot for 21 young entrepreneurs to navigate together.
So we invited Tracy Bianco, leadership coach and speaker, to spend some time with our students and help them think about the leadership skills they'll need along the way.
Tracy focused on two important ideas: Optimism and Ownership.
Through the Oz Principle, students explored what it looks like to operate “below the line” when something goes wrong—covering your tail, finger pointing, ignoring or denying, saying “It's not my job,” or simply waiting for someone else to tell you what to do.
Then they flipped the conversation above the line.
What happened? No excuses. Just the facts.
What's my part in it? Even if I didn't cause the entire problem.
What can I do about it? Focus on what I can control.
What will I do next—and by when? That's where accountability begins.
These aren't just business lessons. They're life skills.
We also spent time talking about optimism and the 3-to-1 ratio—learning how intentionally adding positive thoughts can help redirect our brains when negative thoughts start taking over.
Students wrote down some of the negative thoughts they may find themselves thinking and then challenged themselves to come up with three positive thoughts to counter each one.
And then they shared those positive messages with each other.
It was a simple exercise, but a powerful reminder that we have some influence over the way we respond to challenges and the mindset we bring into a room.
This class business is going to stretch our students. There will be disagreements. There will be things that don't go according to plan. There will be moments when someone needs to step up, take ownership, communicate clearly, stay optimistic and figure out what comes next.
And that's exactly why we do this. We aren't just teaching students how to build a business. We're giving them a place to practice becoming the kind of people who can lead one.
Thank you, Tracy, for sharing your wisdom, energy and encouragement with our Class of 2027! We are grateful for the opportunity to give our students another chance to practice leadership before the stakes get much higher.
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