July 1, 2025 • 40 mins
NorthStar Academy introduces Entrepreneurship 1, a course focused on building character, resilience, and real-world readiness rather than just teaching business fundamentals. Jen Sullivan brings her passion for student transformation to this innovative program that emphasizes growth mindset, grit, redefining failure, and opportunity seeking.
• Developing essential life skills through entrepreneurship education
• Focusing on character development over mere business content
• Building "anti-fragile" students who can handle challenges
• Embracing "progress over perfection" as a guiding principle
• Creating collaborative learning experiences in an online environment
• Transforming struggling students by giving them vision and purpose
• Integrating biblical worldview with entrepreneurial thinking
• Connecting students with resources, mentors, and real-world applications
• Teaching practical business skills through a four-step process: ideation, creation, launch, and growth
• Preparing students for life beyond high school regardless of career path
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
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Stephanie Shafer (00:02):
Hi, this is Stephanie Shafer and you're
listening to the North StarNarrative, a podcast from North
Star Academy.
I want to thank you for joiningus.
I hope you're encouraged,challenged and motivated by what
you learned today.
Enjoy the story.
Hey everybody, welcome to thisweek's episode.
I'm so glad you are here todayfor another special one, as we
(00:26):
get to introduce one of ournewest faculty members who's
bringing something bold andfresh to NorthStar.
We're launchingEntrepreneurship One, which is a
course not just about businessbut about building character,
resilience and real-worldreadiness.
It's a lab for life.
Our guest today just returnedfrom an incredible training with
(00:48):
thought leader Stephen Carter,and if you haven't heard his
podcast from a few weeks ago,you're going to want to go back
and tune in ASAP Stephen Carterand his business, the Seed Tree
Group, where she was able toexplore how to teach the
entrepreneurial mindset, whichis the kind of mindset that
today's students need tonavigate in an uncertain and
(01:10):
fast-changing world.
So, whether your student dreamsof launching a business,
solving big problems or justgrowing in confidence and
purpose, this episode will giveyou a glimpse of what's possible
.
So thank you so much, jenniferSullivan, who I now call Jen,
for just joining me today anddiving into some cool things God
is doing in so many schools andhow we're going to bring that
(01:32):
to North Star now.
Jen Sullivan (01:33):
Yeah, I am really eager just to share with you my
excitement, because I ambubbling up with joy and energy
as we start the entrepreneurshipprogram here at Northstar.
That's so cool.
Stephanie Shafer (01:47):
God's already done some amazing things Just
how I got to meet Stephen andhear about what's happening in
Cincinnati Hills, and so if youlisten to that podcast you'll
hear about it but how I also gotto meet Jen and God just
connecting dots.
I love how he brings hischildren together to be a part
of what he's doing and we justget to watch and join him in
(02:08):
incredible works.
So it's just beginning, butwe've already seen so much and
been able to experience.
So I'm so excited for you tocome on, not only as a teacher
with this new course, but alsohelping in so many other ways
through Northstar and justlearning and growing.
And I love Jim because she'ssuper life-giving and just super
(02:29):
teachable and wants to soak inso much and then give back to
people.
So Northstar is really blessedto have you jumping in at this
time.
Jen Sullivan (02:38):
Thank you so much.
Stephanie Shafer (02:41):
Okay, so let's start with some of the basics
about this entrepreneurship oneand then hopefully to move into
how we want to see this programgrow.
So if a student who's neverthought about business before,
what are just some basic thingsthat you would start with, what
they're going to learn?
Jen Sullivan (02:59):
Yeah.
So one thing that I really liketo stress at the beginning of
this course is that this is notnecessarily a content course.
You're not necessarily going tocome out of this course saying
this is how I write a businessplan.
These are all the steps ofmarketing.
Like, yes, we will touch onthose things, but this
(03:19):
entrepreneurship course really,first and foremost, is more of a
personal development typecourse.
We're going to spend a lot ofweeks making sure that, as a
person, someone who would comethrough this class, would be
equipped to start anentrepreneur endeavor.
Yes, but even if they don'twant to start a business, if you
(03:42):
want to go into nursing or ifyou want to go into any career
or post-education, post-highschool education, you're going
to be equipped with characterqualities to set you up for
success.
And there's four main ones thatwe will hit on.
And so we're going to talkabout growth mindset.
We're going to talk about grit.
(04:04):
We're going to talk about whyredefining failure is so
important, and then also we'regoing to talk about opportunity
seeking.
And again, if you listen to thelist of four, you're going to
say, well, everybody needs that,everybody needs to have grit,
everybody needs to learn thatfailure is not just failure
(04:25):
doesn't just happen when I don'tsucceed and so then I give up.
We've got to redefine failure.
Everybody needs that mindsetshift, especially in today's
culture.
Stephanie Shafer (04:36):
Yeah, that's so good, so exciting.
So we both were able to attendStephen Carter's training back
in March, where we learned likea bigger overview of what the
entrepreneurship program canlook like.
And then you just returned froma more intensive for teachers
(04:57):
that are going to launch it andyou've already had one year
teaching in a brick and mortarschool.
Now you're bringing it toNorthstar with an online.
So, after going to the training, what did you learn?
What are you excited about?
To continue a second year, butthis year to do it online?
Jen Sullivan (05:13):
Yeah, I think one of the things that I absorbed a
little bit more is how all ofthis plays into not just like a
lesson, but how to actuallycraft and put together learning
experiences that are surroundedwith skills applications.
(05:38):
And then, through those lessonsand activities and skills
applications, then we'redeveloping those four attributes
that I just mentioned.
So, again, it's not like, okay,I'm going to come up here and
I'm going to tell you aboutresearch on grit and growth
mindset, and now you're going towrite a paper for me.
I mean, that can be part of it,but we're going to make this
(06:00):
very collaborative, veryhands-on, and this is where
we're going to have to getreally creative and I'm going to
have to be really intentionalabout how you put this in the
online platform.
And so my brain is spinning andI have lots of ideas and I have
supports around me that aregoing to help me make sure that
(06:20):
we're doing this well.
But it's just so much fun Likewe should be getting through a
lesson and then the studentswill look back and say, oh, this
was helping me learn how tofind opportunities, instead of,
on the front end, necessarilysaying this is what we're going
to learn today.
We're going to learn aboutopportunity seeking and lay it
(06:42):
out that way.
It's going to be all wrapped upin lessons and activities.
Stephanie Shafer (06:47):
Yeah, that's exciting.
I love your mindset and justhow you're going to move forward
with these students, and it'ssomething that North Star
believes in is teaching studentsto be lifelong learners the
skills they need to succeed andthis is just one more step with
us moving even moreintentionally in that direction.
(07:07):
So people might be wondering alittle bit about you.
You want to share how longyou've been a teacher, some of
your passions, what you'reexcited about in education right
now.
Jen Sullivan (07:19):
Yeah, absolutely so.
I am a wife and a mom of twokids.
I have a 12-year-old and a10-year-old, so we're starting
to enter into those preteenyears, which is a lot of fun,
and I've been a high school mathteacher for 11 years.
I've been in a really smallChristian school, I've been in a
(07:42):
small public school, and thenI've been in a small public
school, and then I've been in alarger Christian school, and in
those areas I had a variety ofmath roles, so I'm a math
teacher by trade.
In my first two schools I wasthe only high school math
teacher, so I had the whole mathdepartment as my responsibility
(08:02):
.
So I'm used to seeing thingsbig picture and trying to weave
together how what I'm doingtoday plays into the whole
progression of start to finishfor math education.
What I've noticed, though, isthat, in the last three to five
years or so, what's happening inmath education is really taking
(08:25):
a big shift.
When you think about atraditional math class, you
probably imagine walking into aclassroom where all the desks
are in rows and everybody'sfacing forward.
The students take out pencil,paper, calculator, and they're
going to take notes of all theexamples that the teacher puts
up on the board and the teacheris going to explain through the
(08:45):
steps and then maybe you'll geta chance to practice an example
on your own during that lessontime and then you go home and do
homework to practice it andkind of solidify your learning.
But what's happening is thattoday's student has ready access
to problems that can becompleted for them without them
(09:07):
having to work through the steps, whether it's photo math or any
other type of AI program that'sout there.
It's just so different that theanswer cannot be the main goal
of a math problem, like, did Iget the right answer?
Instead, this shift is startingto happen now, where we're
trying to get students to havebetter concept understanding of
(09:31):
mathematical principles and thenthey can apply those math
principles in a variety ofdifferent spaces, which ties in
a lot of critical thinking andanalyzing, a lot of critical
thinking and analyzing, andthere are a lot more strategies
out there for how to accomplishthis in a math classroom.
And so I have been really kindof deep diving into this change
(09:57):
that's happening in matheducation and I've been
following and reading a lot ofdifferent articles, and that, I
think, is what prepared me to beeven willing to step into the
entrepreneurship program becauseI have no business background
at all.
I never took a marketing classin school.
That is just not at all what myexperiences had me leaning into
(10:21):
.
But the main ideas in thisshift in math education really
centered around growth mindsetand grit.
As I read about assessments, Istarted shaping the different
ways that I thought aboutassessments, and in my math
classrooms I let my studentsretake tests and quizzes as many
times as they wanted, because Iwanted them to say that just
(10:44):
because I didn't get it rightthe first time didn't mean that
I should just give up and leaveit behind, but instead I need to
keep trying and keep trying,which develops grit, which is
based on this idea of growthmindset where I can improve if I
put in effort and more time.
And so then, when I startedhearing about this
(11:05):
entrepreneurship curriculum andI saw that all of these
underlying attributes ofentrepreneurship mindset
completely are the foundation ofwhat this course is about man,
my heart shifted and I got soexcited to be able to have an
(11:25):
influence and a space to be inthese conversations where we're
going to talk about growthmindset and grit.
But it's not just in my mathclass, it's about everywhere, in
every aspect of life, whetherit's sports or instruments or
other extracurricular activities, afterschool jobs, I mean
(11:47):
whatever.
This stuff applies everywhere.
Stephanie Shafer (11:52):
I love that so cool, yeah, and just that you
have found this and are sopassionate about it and how it
connects with your we'll sayfirst love in math, but then you
get to see it.
Jen Sullivan (12:06):
Yeah, absolutely.
Stephanie Shafer (12:08):
So fun.
All right, you've mentionedthat it's not just about ideas,
it's about actions.
Can you share what studentswill actually get to do in the
class?
Jen Sullivan (12:18):
Yeah.
So I have a lot of ideas abouthow to get the kids doing action
type items.
So one of the things that Iwant to be really intentional
about is collaboration.
One of the one of the mostimportant skills for the 21st
(12:39):
century student is to know howto collaborate.
A 21st century student is toknow how to collaborate.
You know, we're hearing moreand more that jobs and employers
they don't need an employee tocome in and be an expert.
They need an employee to comein and be A willing to learn,
but then B know how tocollaborate and be malleable and
(13:03):
teachable.
And so collaboration is goingto be a huge emphasis on skills.
And so, as we're doingdifferent activities in class,
these kids are going to get achance to be bumped out into
little groups and they're goingto be working on a Word document
together.
They're going to be FaceTimingand on Teams, calls, zoom calls
(13:26):
they're going to be talkingface-to-face with one another
around a problem.
One thing about theentrepreneurship mindset is that
opportunities forentrepreneurship happen in
problems.
We find a problem and then fromthere we can work to find a
solution, and so when I givethese kids a problem, it's
(13:48):
around that problem that they'regoing to be able to discuss
ideas and they're going to haveto learn that maybe someone else
has a better idea than they do.
So there's going to be somehumility that we're going to
have to exercise and listeningand being able to adapt and
reframe our thinking about aproblem.
Also, it's really importantwhen we're talking about
(14:11):
problems to have empathy, andthat's one of the things that
really has an opportunity tobuild in biblical worldview,
because, as we are thinkingabout, how does entrepreneurship
apply to us as a Christian?
You know Jesus went out to seekand save the lost.
(14:31):
He was a solution giver to ourproblem of sin, but he also
calls us to be servants as well.
You know, whatever we do to theleast of these, be servants as
well.
You know, whatever we do to theleast of these, we've done to
him, and so as we look to stepinto, you know, potential
careers and vocations, we needto have that mindset of the
(14:53):
solution that I'm bringing isnot just to exalt myself and to
earn me a lot of money, but itis about being a servant and
serving and helping otherpeoples by giving them a
solution to their problems.
And that again, a collaboration,because I can't do that on my
own.
We are told in scripture thatwe are a body of Christ.
(15:15):
We are made up of eyes and earsand different parts, just like
a human body is, and it's thesame way in this class.
I want everybody to understandthat they bring something
special, they are needed, theirpoint of view is important and I
want to make sure that we'recreating spaces where the kids
are learning to show empathy andto listen and collaborate.
Stephanie Shafer (15:40):
So fun.
I want to be part of it.
I've talked to some alumniabout the course and they're
like, oh, I wish this had beenthere.
They want to come back.
So one of my dreams is to getthe alumni plugged in more and
more, so maybe I can get somethat are excited about this to
jump in with you and help alongthe way.
Jen Sullivan (16:02):
Because another thing I really want to do is
start to weave in mentorships,because, as our students are
spread out across the globe, youknow, it's different than in my
brick and mortar school wherewe started a coffee shop and so
everybody was in the same spaceand we were working towards the
same goal of opening a coffeeshop and having a profitable
(16:23):
business on campus.
And so having other people comein, you know, in to North Star
and be willing to be availablefor mentorship opportunities and
guiding these students alongcareer paths that maybe they're
interested in exploring, I meanthat's going to be really,
(16:43):
really valuable because, again,I don't have all of those
experiences and the knowledgebase and so when we can pull
others in, that can help supportour mission of serving these
kids as well.
Stephanie Shafer (16:56):
And giving the students real life.
Okay, this is collaboration.
We're bringing people in andwe're all learning from one
another.
Absolutely so exciting.
So this is just the very tip ofsomething.
What I believe is going to beyeah, grow more and more and
more.
So I'm so excited yeah, justcan't say that enough.
Jen Sullivan (17:18):
I was trying to think about, like what other
words can I use besides excited?
Like how to source that?
Because otherwise I could juststay excited over and, over and
over it really is just thrilledsitting on the edge of our seats
yes all right.
Stephanie Shafer (17:33):
You've seen students transform through this
kind of learning.
Can you tell us a story of,maybe one that surprised even
you?
Knowing what's going, you knowwhat was coming, a student that
really just stood out.
Jen Sullivan (17:47):
Absolutely.
There was a student that I hadhad and I'd had him in math
classes and I knew that he kindof he was a struggler.
He struggled in traditionaleducation, he had some learning
challenges and dyslexia is wasone of his big challenges.
And so I kind of again I knewthat this kid kind of struggled
(18:09):
in school and when we firststarted the program and we're
working through the content andyou know again the, the four
attributes, the growth mindsetand the grit you know we're
learning, listening to podcasts,we're reading articles and he
just was kind of floundering, hejust wasn't doing the work.
(18:31):
One of the big projects that wedo really early on in the course
is that we make a personalgrowth plan and so it's intended
to be pretty in-depth, wherethey set a goal for what we've
laid out as six different areasof our lives, so like health and
our spiritual wellness,finances, education, things like
(18:53):
that, and so, um, he justdidn't do it, he, he couldn't.
He was struggling to set goalsfor himself, almost like I don't
know where I'm going, I don'teven know how I want to grow,
and he just seemed so stuck, um,and I I remember having his mom
(19:14):
in at a parent teacherconference and she was just kind
of in tears Like I see my sonstruggling and I and I don't
know how to help him.
So, kind of, fast forward, weget through um, we get beyond
that assignment.
And then we took a day and wentto um, an offsite coffee
(19:36):
distributor, and we got to tourthe building.
They gave us training on how togrind the coffee beans and pull
espresso shots and make lattes.
It was very hands-on all day andwe came back from that and it's
like something flipped in thiskid where he just got so excited
he would come to class and sayMrs Sullivan, I was looking at
(19:58):
these different beans online andmy dad and I ordered these
espresso beans.
We're going to try them.
Oh, we got this espresso makerand so now we're going to make
coffee at home.
And then he went back andactually did the missing
assignments.
He actually started settinggoals and he did the missing
assignments and it got to bearound November, early December.
And I remember he walked in oneday and he did the missing
(20:19):
assignments and it got to bearound November, early December.
And I remember he walked in oneday and he said Mrs Sullivan, I
think I want to start a coffeeshop.
I think this is what I want todo after I graduate high school.
And it was so neat that notonly did that change and that
like life start, like I saw inhis face, I saw in the way he
(20:43):
was just walking through thehalls, but then it was really
exciting because I also saw theuptick in his math assignments,
Cause I was, I had him in mathclass also and I saw a
difference.
He was coming in with hisassignments done on time, he was
asking me questions, moreengaged in class and all I can
(21:04):
say is that this kid startedhaving a vision for his future
and it happened.
And I know that it was becauseof this program, because his mom
told me she emailed me later on, in the second semester
semester, and she said thisprogram completely changed my
son.
And that's what we want.
(21:25):
We want for students not justour academically inclined, you
know straight A students to havesuccess.
But what about those studentsthat struggle in their core
classes and maybe they don'thave a vision for what life will
look like after high school?
Again, college isn't foreverybody, and so if we can give
(21:48):
kids this idea of lookingbeyond where they are right now
and it can give them like a hopeand an energy to fuel what they
have to do right now, Becauseyou know, your math class is
important, your English class isimportant and we have to get
(22:08):
the most out of those spaces.
And sometimes that can bereally hard when the kids don't
seem to value what's happeningthere, they don't see like the
worth necessarily.
And so, if I can point them,point them to say, okay, look to
your future and now, how canyou use what's right in front of
you there now to boost you towhere you want to go.
(22:32):
Man, that it's again.
It's just transformative.
Stephanie Shafer (22:36):
It is to watch that light bulb go off in a
student.
Wow, so rewarding, yes, okay.
So, as I'm listening and peoplemight be thinking as well, okay
, we can't all get in a bus andgo to a coffee shop, so what are
we going to be doing online,where students have that same
type of exposure?
Jen Sullivan (22:54):
So this is where we're going to have to figure
out where are spaces in yourcommunity that your kids can
plug into, and also, are therespaces within North Star where
our kids can plug into?
So I think it'd be really coolif we had different kinds of
(23:15):
like online vendor shops thatour students could come and
purchase from.
I'm thinking things liket-shirts or stickers.
You know anybody that has acricket.
These days you can make asticker and so where are we
going to have spaces where kidscan be creating whether it's
(23:35):
digitally at home, or maybethey're even going to come up
with something that they'recreating in their home, and then
they're going to have an onlineplatform within Northstar where
other students can come andpurchase from them?
I had a student in my lastschool and she had a business
making like key chains, likemacrame key chains.
(23:58):
She did key chains, earrings,and then they had stickers, and
I love this idea that whatstudents are already interested
in terms of things that theylike to do, giving them a space
where they can sell it.
Now, there's a whole lot to tryand sift through to make that
happen, and so there are a lotof details that we'll have to
(24:20):
iron out.
But another space, too, isthere's so many things that are
um, that are digital skills thatpeople will pay for.
I mean, this morning I was eventhinking I need to get a picture
for you know this place, youknow to update my LinkedIn
profile or something I'm like ohI just wish I could like take
(24:41):
my picture and that someonewould edit it and make it look
good, cause I don't know how todo that, but maybe we have
students within our North starstudent body who are really good
, um, photo editors and so if wehad a space where they could
use those skills for North Star,for students, for parents, and
(25:03):
help solve that problem for ourNorth Star families community
body there, and that's a spacewhere they could be utilizing
some of those skills in abusiness-making type of venture.
(25:24):
Uh, some of those skills in abusiness making type of venture.
But maybe Sarah isn't good withphoto editing but maybe Sarah
is really good with marketing.
So maybe Sarah partners up withJoe and Joe does the photo
editing and Sarah does themarketing, and now we've got a
collaborative experiencehappening where we have one
venture of photo editing but wehave lots of students working
(25:44):
together for the different areasof that business.
Stephanie Shafer (25:48):
Yeah, wow, so cool.
And as you're talking, I'mthinking, oh, we could use this
area or this area.
There's so many ways to getinvolved.
Yes, of North Star, but that'sgoing to be new for me.
Jen Sullivan (26:00):
So this is where I'm going to really lean in to
you guys who have been embeddedin Northstar and just the
creativity of other people,because again, I recognize that
this is a new space for me andso I'm going to have to kind of
start thinking big and thinkingoutside the box.
And, honestly, one of thereally cool experiences with
(26:23):
this is that in our curriculumwe have a whole kind of
four-step process where studentswork through like, let's say,
they now have their problem,which is their opportunity for
their business.
We're going to actually walkthem through a four-step process
for how do we actually takethis and lay out a business?
(26:43):
The process starts withideation.
So once I find my problem, I'mgoing to get really creative and
really curious about the ideaof setting up a business to
solve this problem.
Then, once we come up with anidea, then we'll talk about how
does this actually create into abusiness?
So then we'll have a creationphase and again the students are
(27:04):
working through this four-stepprocess before they even edit
their first photo.
So, ideation, creation.
Then they launch it and withinthat launch, uh, what we talk
about as a MVP, a minimum viableproduct we want to have some
(27:24):
sort of like prototype, um, thisidea of uh, this is my thing
that I'm selling, this is myventure that I'm tackling, and
we're just going to start doingit, because entrepreneurs are
biased for acting.
They just get out there and dothat.
They don't wait until it'sperfect before they start, they
just get out there so we launchand then from that launch it's
(27:46):
kind of launch, test, fix,launch, again test, fix, test
and fix and test and fix.
And then from there we alsothink about how do we grow the
business.
So the fourth stage is growth,and the students are going to
get to bring their creativeideas to the class and it's not
going to just be me saying thisis what you're going to do, and
(28:07):
this is what you're going to do,and this is what you're going
to do.
They are going to get to bringtheir ideas to me too, and so
that they can have somethingthat they're passionate and
excited about, that aligns withtheir mission, vision, values
and skills that they have.
Stephanie Shafer (28:24):
Hey, so exciting.
One thing.
When you said perfection,entrepreneurs, don't wait.
I thought at Northstar.
Sometimes we have a lot ofstudents that are perfectionists
and they might spend too muchtime, which causes them to get
behind on certain assignments orcourses.
So this would be great even forthat aspect to learn.
(28:44):
Okay, everything doesn't haveto be perfect.
You get in, you try, you moveon.
Yeah, that just jumped out atme.
Jen Sullivan (28:52):
Absolutely, absolutely.
One of the phrases that Ireally cling to, because I call
myself a recovering um, arecovering perfectionist Um.
But it's so important that inthis new mindset that we are
valuing progress over perfection.
It's it's not just about likegetting to the finish line, it
(29:17):
is about seeing where I am todayand that next week I want to be
further towards my goal.
It doesn't mean that I'm notgoing to make mistakes, because
everybody's going to makemistakes in this class.
Everyone is going to make amistake and that's pay.
We want those mistakes becauseit's in those mistakes that we
learn how to fix it, we learnhow to pivot, we learn that real
(29:41):
life lesson of oops.
I'm not going to do that again,and not because Mrs Sullivan
told me not to, but because Isaw the consequence and the
result of that action.
Yeah, progress over perfectionjust has to be so much of our
mindset because, again, ourtechnology has answers and they
(30:01):
have information and they haveeverything that we need right at
our fingertips.
So, as a human being, anymore Idon't need to be perfect,
because my phone can be perfectfor me.
Essentially, I, as a human,need to be so focused on
progress and how can I improveand grow?
Stephanie Shafer (30:22):
Yeah, so important.
Love, love, all the things thatstudents are going to get to
learn and experience andprogress over perfection is so
true.
And it doesn't matter how oldyou are we don't stop failing.
We do not stop failing.
I probably fail more in myolder age.
Jen Sullivan (30:40):
But let's fail forward.
Failing forward means I'm still.
It's okay that I still makemistakes, but I'm making
mistakes that are different fromthe ones that I've already made
.
Stephanie Shafer (30:52):
Yeah yeah, so good.
All right, so we'll wrap it upwith the conference.
You just returned from moretraining from Stephen, so what
did you take away that fired youup the most, and how is it
going to shape your teaching atNorthstar?
Jen Sullivan (31:07):
Yeah.
So one thing that I thought wasreally interesting was that, as
I was walking through thiscurriculum again, this training
was a deep dive into thecurriculum that I had just spent
a year teaching, so therewasn't a whole lot of new from
it, because I had alreadytrained on it.
I'd already taught it one yearand now I'm hearing it again.
(31:30):
But what I think was reallyimportant was twofold.
So one is just kind of a deeperpassion for the oh yeah of this
curriculum, just a deeperexcitement and agreement that
this is what education needs.
Our education system cannotstay the same as what it's been
(31:53):
for the last 10, 15, 20 years.
Our world is different, ourstudents are different because
of it, and our education needsto meet their needs, so it has
to is different.
Our students are differentbecause of it, and our education
needs to meet their needs, soit has to be different.
So I have a ton of just likeenthusiasm and like deep
agreement for what I'm teaching.
But what was really exciting atthis training was that there
(32:14):
were over 20 other educatorsthat were here going through
this with me, and so now I'vegot personally, I've got a
resource of 20 other educatorsthat are across the nation doing
entrepreneurship in theirschools and their ideas.
I mean, we have a group textthread going on now where we're
(32:37):
all just encouraging one anotherand supporting one another,
throwing out ideas, or hey, I'mstruggling with this man.
I'm so ready to tap into theseknowledgeable leaders in other
schools, as I'm stepping into anew environment myself, so one
of the things that I 100% knowis that I don't know everything,
(32:58):
and so I want to be really goodat utilizing my resources.
So I've come away from thiswith not only a ton more
resources from Stephen, and so Ihave access to all of these
tools and documents andchecklists and things like that,
but I also have access to nowall these other educators, and
(33:19):
so I'm really, really thankfulfor that.
Stephanie Shafer (33:23):
Yeah, and that's so important.
I think, as we think abouteducation changing everyone,
every school does not have timeto do the same thing More
sharing, more collaboration,more encouraging one another and
helping.
And I think at Converge 2025,where I met Stephen, I saw that
in educators and it wasn't therethe last few years.
(33:46):
There is excitement and thereis light and encouraging one
another and helping one anotherand staying in contact.
Yeah, so I love, love, lovethat.
All right.
For any students or parentsthat might be on the fence about
this course, whether or notthey should take it, what would
you say?
Jen Sullivan (34:03):
One thing I would say is that, um, adults, jobs,
employers they all agree that itseems like right now, students,
more so than ever, are.
They're labeling them asfragile.
We have fragile kids who don'tknow how to deal with the
(34:27):
difficulties of life after thehigh school bubble, and so I
want you to hear that again.
This is.
This program is not just aboutpushing out kids that are going
to start businesses.
This program is aboutdeveloping students as
individuals who are what we arenow turning, as anti-fragile
(34:51):
Students that can fail and failforward.
They can fail and not break.
They can have this idea ofgrowth.
They can have the internalfortitude to pursue goals that
are long-term goals.
They're allowed to see in thefuture and delay gratification
(35:14):
because they're working towardsa goal.
These are all things that,again, every student needs.
Every student needs this, andwhat we're learning here will
apply into every single class,every single job field, to every
(35:35):
single class, every single jobfield, anything that anybody
would want to do.
This.
I kind of told my students I'mlike it's kind of like it's it's
not a self-help class, but it'slike a personal development
class.
I mean, think about how a Biblestudy you, you enter into a
Bible study, assuming thatyou're going to read scripture
and grow and develop personallybecause of your community and
(35:57):
because of the learning and thetime spent in God's word.
This class is like that.
It's like Bible study, butwe're also going to be talking
about business-y elements.
But don't get me wrong.
Again, there's going to beBible in this.
There's biblical worldviewssaturated through this content,
(36:19):
but it is about preparingstudents for what life is like
outside of high school.
Stephanie Shafer (36:25):
Yeah, and one of my biggest things I took away
from the training I went to tosteward God's kingdom, his
resources, not about makingmoney and everything that might
go with that, but what you dohave at the moment and then what
you do gain in the future, howto steward that well and what
that looks like and what thatmeans, all right.
(36:45):
So I'm excited we're not makinga perfect course, a perfect
track, a perfect program, likewhatever this develops.
We're going to be learningtogether and failing forward and
excited about it and just, yeah, trying new things out,
celebrating what God's doing,all the students he's bringing,
gifted each one, and so walkingforward in love, celebration his
(37:09):
kingdom purposes here.
And I love it because God hasgiven all of our faculty and
staff so many students that weget to steward well through
discipleship, through givingthem these opportunities and
skills and loving them, and so,yeah, we're stewarding that
together.
I'm so glad that you're onboard to help with that and be a
part of, yeah, this incrediblenew time, new chapter in North
(37:33):
Stars history.
Jen Sullivan (37:35):
Thank you, it is an honor.
It is an honor and a privilegeto be starting these classes
here for the North Starcommunity.
I am just eager to get going.
I'm so much just like chompingon the bit, like let's go, like
I to, let's get who who's goingto be in my class.
I want to learn their names, Iwant to learn what they like to
(37:55):
do and let's start.
Let's start doing stuff.
I'm just so excited.
Stephanie Shafer (38:00):
Yeah, and so some people might be thinking
what I thought it was online,you never saw people.
But at Northstar we haveopportunities for some of our
courses to be live and we callthose NSA Live, and so this is
one of our NSA Live courses.
So your students will bemeeting with other students in
person and then meeting outsideof those already scheduled times
(38:23):
, collaborating.
So lots of good time to takeonline course but also mix it up
and be with people, and sogreat, great opportunity coming.
Jen Sullivan (38:33):
Absolutely.
Yeah, I'm really excited as Istarted to think about how we're
going to shape the live classtime period versus the other
four days of the week whenthey're doing assignments, and
some of those assignments aregoing to be to get with their
group and to have a conversationaround this topic.
I mean so they are going to beworking and communicating and
(38:57):
collaborating.
We keep saying that word, butit's so important collaborating
with their classmates.
Stephanie Shafer (39:05):
Yeah, and some kids might be.
I don't know if I want to talkonline or be seen or whatever
you know.
But don't be scared, becauseeverybody's going to have those
feelings and that's just whatit's all about.
We're doing something new,getting out of our comfort zone,
and that's where that growthand the grit and all the things
they're going to be built in.
So thank you so much forjoining me today, super excited
(39:26):
to be here.
Jen Sullivan (39:26):
Thank you, I'm so, so grateful for the opportunity
and I cannot wait to see whoGod brings into these classes.
Stephanie Shafer (39:34):
Thank you so much for listening today.
If you have any questions forour guest or would like
information about Northstar,please email us.
At podcast at NSA dot school,we love having guests on our
show and getting to hear theirstories.
If you have anyone in mind thatyou think would be a great
guest to feature, please emailus and let us know.
And don't forget to subscribeso you don't miss out on
(40:01):
upcoming stories.
Hi, this is Stephanie Shafer and you're
listening to the North StarNarrative, a podcast from North
Star Academy.
I want to thank you for joiningus.
I hope you're encouraged,challenged and motivated by what
you learned today.
Enjoy the story.
Hey everybody, welcome to thisweek's episode.
I'm so glad you are here todayfor another special one, as we
(00:26):
get to introduce one of ournewest faculty members who's
bringing something bold andfresh to NorthStar.
We're launchingEntrepreneurship One, which is a
course not just about businessbut about building character,
resilience and real-worldreadiness.
It's a lab for life.
Our guest today just returnedfrom an incredible training with
(00:48):
thought leader Stephen Carter,and if you haven't heard his
podcast from a few weeks ago,you're going to want to go back
and tune in ASAP Stephen Carterand his business, the Seed Tree
Group, where she was able toexplore how to teach the
entrepreneurial mindset, whichis the kind of mindset that
today's students need tonavigate in an uncertain and
(01:10):
fast-changing world.
So, whether your student dreamsof launching a business,
solving big problems or justgrowing in confidence and
purpose, this episode will giveyou a glimpse of what's possible
.
So thank you so much, jenniferSullivan, who I now call Jen,
for just joining me today anddiving into some cool things God
is doing in so many schools andhow we're going to bring that
(01:32):
to North Star now.
Jen Sullivan (01:33):
Yeah, I am really eager just to share with you my
excitement, because I ambubbling up with joy and energy
as we start the entrepreneurshipprogram here at Northstar.
That's so cool.
Stephanie Shafer (01:47):
God's already done some amazing things Just
how I got to meet Stephen andhear about what's happening in
Cincinnati Hills, and so if youlisten to that podcast you'll
hear about it but how I also gotto meet Jen and God just
connecting dots.
I love how he brings hischildren together to be a part
of what he's doing and we justget to watch and join him in
(02:08):
incredible works.
So it's just beginning, butwe've already seen so much and
been able to experience.
So I'm so excited for you tocome on, not only as a teacher
with this new course, but alsohelping in so many other ways
through Northstar and justlearning and growing.
And I love Jim because she'ssuper life-giving and just super
(02:29):
teachable and wants to soak inso much and then give back to
people.
So Northstar is really blessedto have you jumping in at this
time.
Jen Sullivan (02:38):
Thank you so much.
Stephanie Shafer (02:41):
Okay, so let's start with some of the basics
about this entrepreneurship oneand then hopefully to move into
how we want to see this programgrow.
So if a student who's neverthought about business before,
what are just some basic thingsthat you would start with, what
they're going to learn?
Jen Sullivan (02:59):
Yeah.
So one thing that I really liketo stress at the beginning of
this course is that this is notnecessarily a content course.
You're not necessarily going tocome out of this course saying
this is how I write a businessplan.
These are all the steps ofmarketing.
Like, yes, we will touch onthose things, but this
(03:19):
entrepreneurship course really,first and foremost, is more of a
personal development typecourse.
We're going to spend a lot ofweeks making sure that, as a
person, someone who would comethrough this class, would be
equipped to start anentrepreneur endeavor.
Yes, but even if they don'twant to start a business, if you
(03:42):
want to go into nursing or ifyou want to go into any career
or post-education, post-highschool education, you're going
to be equipped with characterqualities to set you up for
success.
And there's four main ones thatwe will hit on.
And so we're going to talkabout growth mindset.
We're going to talk about grit.
(04:04):
We're going to talk about whyredefining failure is so
important, and then also we'regoing to talk about opportunity
seeking.
And again, if you listen to thelist of four, you're going to
say, well, everybody needs that,everybody needs to have grit,
everybody needs to learn thatfailure is not just failure
(04:25):
doesn't just happen when I don'tsucceed and so then I give up.
We've got to redefine failure.
Everybody needs that mindsetshift, especially in today's
culture.
Stephanie Shafer (04:36):
Yeah, that's so good, so exciting.
So we both were able to attendStephen Carter's training back
in March, where we learned likea bigger overview of what the
entrepreneurship program canlook like.
And then you just returned froma more intensive for teachers
(04:57):
that are going to launch it andyou've already had one year
teaching in a brick and mortarschool.
Now you're bringing it toNorthstar with an online.
So, after going to the training, what did you learn?
What are you excited about?
To continue a second year, butthis year to do it online?
Jen Sullivan (05:13):
Yeah, I think one of the things that I absorbed a
little bit more is how all ofthis plays into not just like a
lesson, but how to actuallycraft and put together learning
experiences that are surroundedwith skills applications.
(05:38):
And then, through those lessonsand activities and skills
applications, then we'redeveloping those four attributes
that I just mentioned.
So, again, it's not like, okay,I'm going to come up here and
I'm going to tell you aboutresearch on grit and growth
mindset, and now you're going towrite a paper for me.
I mean, that can be part of it,but we're going to make this
(06:00):
very collaborative, veryhands-on, and this is where
we're going to have to getreally creative and I'm going to
have to be really intentionalabout how you put this in the
online platform.
And so my brain is spinning andI have lots of ideas and I have
supports around me that aregoing to help me make sure that
(06:20):
we're doing this well.
But it's just so much fun Likewe should be getting through a
lesson and then the studentswill look back and say, oh, this
was helping me learn how tofind opportunities, instead of,
on the front end, necessarilysaying this is what we're going
to learn today.
We're going to learn aboutopportunity seeking and lay it
(06:42):
out that way.
It's going to be all wrapped upin lessons and activities.
Stephanie Shafer (06:47):
Yeah, that's exciting.
I love your mindset and justhow you're going to move forward
with these students, and it'ssomething that North Star
believes in is teaching studentsto be lifelong learners the
skills they need to succeed andthis is just one more step with
us moving even moreintentionally in that direction.
(07:07):
So people might be wondering alittle bit about you.
You want to share how longyou've been a teacher, some of
your passions, what you'reexcited about in education right
now.
Jen Sullivan (07:19):
Yeah, absolutely so.
I am a wife and a mom of twokids.
I have a 12-year-old and a10-year-old, so we're starting
to enter into those preteenyears, which is a lot of fun,
and I've been a high school mathteacher for 11 years.
I've been in a really smallChristian school, I've been in a
(07:42):
small public school, and thenI've been in a small public
school, and then I've been in alarger Christian school, and in
those areas I had a variety ofmath roles, so I'm a math
teacher by trade.
In my first two schools I wasthe only high school math
teacher, so I had the whole mathdepartment as my responsibility
(08:02):
.
So I'm used to seeing thingsbig picture and trying to weave
together how what I'm doingtoday plays into the whole
progression of start to finishfor math education.
What I've noticed, though, isthat, in the last three to five
years or so, what's happening inmath education is really taking
(08:25):
a big shift.
When you think about atraditional math class, you
probably imagine walking into aclassroom where all the desks
are in rows and everybody'sfacing forward.
The students take out pencil,paper, calculator, and they're
going to take notes of all theexamples that the teacher puts
up on the board and the teacheris going to explain through the
(08:45):
steps and then maybe you'll geta chance to practice an example
on your own during that lessontime and then you go home and do
homework to practice it andkind of solidify your learning.
But what's happening is thattoday's student has ready access
to problems that can becompleted for them without them
(09:07):
having to work through the steps, whether it's photo math or any
other type of AI program that'sout there.
It's just so different that theanswer cannot be the main goal
of a math problem, like, did Iget the right answer?
Instead, this shift is startingto happen now, where we're
trying to get students to havebetter concept understanding of
(09:31):
mathematical principles and thenthey can apply those math
principles in a variety ofdifferent spaces, which ties in
a lot of critical thinking andanalyzing, a lot of critical
thinking and analyzing, andthere are a lot more strategies
out there for how to accomplishthis in a math classroom.
And so I have been really kindof deep diving into this change
(09:57):
that's happening in matheducation and I've been
following and reading a lot ofdifferent articles, and that, I
think, is what prepared me to beeven willing to step into the
entrepreneurship program becauseI have no business background
at all.
I never took a marketing classin school.
That is just not at all what myexperiences had me leaning into
(10:21):
.
But the main ideas in thisshift in math education really
centered around growth mindsetand grit.
As I read about assessments, Istarted shaping the different
ways that I thought aboutassessments, and in my math
classrooms I let my studentsretake tests and quizzes as many
times as they wanted, because Iwanted them to say that just
(10:44):
because I didn't get it rightthe first time didn't mean that
I should just give up and leaveit behind, but instead I need to
keep trying and keep trying,which develops grit, which is
based on this idea of growthmindset where I can improve if I
put in effort and more time.
And so then, when I startedhearing about this
(11:05):
entrepreneurship curriculum andI saw that all of these
underlying attributes ofentrepreneurship mindset
completely are the foundation ofwhat this course is about man,
my heart shifted and I got soexcited to be able to have an
(11:25):
influence and a space to be inthese conversations where we're
going to talk about growthmindset and grit.
But it's not just in my mathclass, it's about everywhere, in
every aspect of life, whetherit's sports or instruments or
other extracurricular activities, afterschool jobs, I mean
(11:47):
whatever.
This stuff applies everywhere.
Stephanie Shafer (11:52):
I love that so cool, yeah, and just that you
have found this and are sopassionate about it and how it
connects with your we'll sayfirst love in math, but then you
get to see it.
Jen Sullivan (12:06):
Yeah, absolutely.
Stephanie Shafer (12:08):
So fun.
All right, you've mentionedthat it's not just about ideas,
it's about actions.
Can you share what studentswill actually get to do in the
class?
Jen Sullivan (12:18):
Yeah.
So I have a lot of ideas abouthow to get the kids doing action
type items.
So one of the things that Iwant to be really intentional
about is collaboration.
One of the one of the mostimportant skills for the 21st
(12:39):
century student is to know howto collaborate.
A 21st century student is toknow how to collaborate.
You know, we're hearing moreand more that jobs and employers
they don't need an employee tocome in and be an expert.
They need an employee to comein and be A willing to learn,
but then B know how tocollaborate and be malleable and
(13:03):
teachable.
And so collaboration is goingto be a huge emphasis on skills.
And so, as we're doingdifferent activities in class,
these kids are going to get achance to be bumped out into
little groups and they're goingto be working on a Word document
together.
They're going to be FaceTimingand on Teams, calls, zoom calls
(13:26):
they're going to be talkingface-to-face with one another
around a problem.
One thing about theentrepreneurship mindset is that
opportunities forentrepreneurship happen in
problems.
We find a problem and then fromthere we can work to find a
solution, and so when I givethese kids a problem, it's
(13:48):
around that problem that they'regoing to be able to discuss
ideas and they're going to haveto learn that maybe someone else
has a better idea than they do.
So there's going to be somehumility that we're going to
have to exercise and listeningand being able to adapt and
reframe our thinking about aproblem.
Also, it's really importantwhen we're talking about
(14:11):
problems to have empathy, andthat's one of the things that
really has an opportunity tobuild in biblical worldview,
because, as we are thinkingabout, how does entrepreneurship
apply to us as a Christian?
You know Jesus went out to seekand save the lost.
(14:31):
He was a solution giver to ourproblem of sin, but he also
calls us to be servants as well.
You know, whatever we do to theleast of these, be servants as
well.
You know, whatever we do to theleast of these, we've done to
him, and so as we look to stepinto, you know, potential
careers and vocations, we needto have that mindset of the
(14:53):
solution that I'm bringing isnot just to exalt myself and to
earn me a lot of money, but itis about being a servant and
serving and helping otherpeoples by giving them a
solution to their problems.
And that again, a collaboration,because I can't do that on my
own.
We are told in scripture thatwe are a body of Christ.
(15:15):
We are made up of eyes and earsand different parts, just like
a human body is, and it's thesame way in this class.
I want everybody to understandthat they bring something
special, they are needed, theirpoint of view is important and I
want to make sure that we'recreating spaces where the kids
are learning to show empathy andto listen and collaborate.
Stephanie Shafer (15:40):
So fun.
I want to be part of it.
I've talked to some alumniabout the course and they're
like, oh, I wish this had beenthere.
They want to come back.
So one of my dreams is to getthe alumni plugged in more and
more, so maybe I can get somethat are excited about this to
jump in with you and help alongthe way.
Jen Sullivan (16:02):
Because another thing I really want to do is
start to weave in mentorships,because, as our students are
spread out across the globe, youknow, it's different than in my
brick and mortar school wherewe started a coffee shop and so
everybody was in the same spaceand we were working towards the
same goal of opening a coffeeshop and having a profitable
(16:23):
business on campus.
And so having other people comein, you know, in to North Star
and be willing to be availablefor mentorship opportunities and
guiding these students alongcareer paths that maybe they're
interested in exploring, I meanthat's going to be really,
(16:43):
really valuable because, again,I don't have all of those
experiences and the knowledgebase and so when we can pull
others in, that can help supportour mission of serving these
kids as well.
Stephanie Shafer (16:56):
And giving the students real life.
Okay, this is collaboration.
We're bringing people in andwe're all learning from one
another.
Absolutely so exciting.
So this is just the very tip ofsomething.
What I believe is going to beyeah, grow more and more and
more.
So I'm so excited yeah, justcan't say that enough.
Jen Sullivan (17:18):
I was trying to think about, like what other
words can I use besides excited?
Like how to source that?
Because otherwise I could juststay excited over and, over and
over it really is just thrilledsitting on the edge of our seats
yes all right.
Stephanie Shafer (17:33):
You've seen students transform through this
kind of learning.
Can you tell us a story of,maybe one that surprised even
you?
Knowing what's going, you knowwhat was coming, a student that
really just stood out.
Jen Sullivan (17:47):
Absolutely.
There was a student that I hadhad and I'd had him in math
classes and I knew that he kindof he was a struggler.
He struggled in traditionaleducation, he had some learning
challenges and dyslexia is wasone of his big challenges.
And so I kind of again I knewthat this kid kind of struggled
(18:09):
in school and when we firststarted the program and we're
working through the content andyou know again the, the four
attributes, the growth mindsetand the grit you know we're
learning, listening to podcasts,we're reading articles and he
just was kind of floundering, hejust wasn't doing the work.
(18:31):
One of the big projects that wedo really early on in the course
is that we make a personalgrowth plan and so it's intended
to be pretty in-depth, wherethey set a goal for what we've
laid out as six different areasof our lives, so like health and
our spiritual wellness,finances, education, things like
(18:53):
that, and so, um, he justdidn't do it, he, he couldn't.
He was struggling to set goalsfor himself, almost like I don't
know where I'm going, I don'teven know how I want to grow,
and he just seemed so stuck, um,and I I remember having his mom
(19:14):
in at a parent teacherconference and she was just kind
of in tears Like I see my sonstruggling and I and I don't
know how to help him.
So, kind of, fast forward, weget through um, we get beyond
that assignment.
And then we took a day and wentto um, an offsite coffee
(19:36):
distributor, and we got to tourthe building.
They gave us training on how togrind the coffee beans and pull
espresso shots and make lattes.
It was very hands-on all day andwe came back from that and it's
like something flipped in thiskid where he just got so excited
he would come to class and sayMrs Sullivan, I was looking at
(19:58):
these different beans online andmy dad and I ordered these
espresso beans.
We're going to try them.
Oh, we got this espresso makerand so now we're going to make
coffee at home.
And then he went back andactually did the missing
assignments.
He actually started settinggoals and he did the missing
assignments and it got to bearound November, early December.
And I remember he walked in oneday and he did the missing
(20:19):
assignments and it got to bearound November, early December.
And I remember he walked in oneday and he said Mrs Sullivan, I
think I want to start a coffeeshop.
I think this is what I want todo after I graduate high school.
And it was so neat that notonly did that change and that
like life start, like I saw inhis face, I saw in the way he
(20:43):
was just walking through thehalls, but then it was really
exciting because I also saw theuptick in his math assignments,
Cause I was, I had him in mathclass also and I saw a
difference.
He was coming in with hisassignments done on time, he was
asking me questions, moreengaged in class and all I can
(21:04):
say is that this kid startedhaving a vision for his future
and it happened.
And I know that it was becauseof this program, because his mom
told me she emailed me later on, in the second semester
semester, and she said thisprogram completely changed my
son.
And that's what we want.
(21:25):
We want for students not justour academically inclined, you
know straight A students to havesuccess.
But what about those studentsthat struggle in their core
classes and maybe they don'thave a vision for what life will
look like after high school?
Again, college isn't foreverybody, and so if we can give
(21:48):
kids this idea of lookingbeyond where they are right now
and it can give them like a hopeand an energy to fuel what they
have to do right now, Becauseyou know, your math class is
important, your English class isimportant and we have to get
(22:08):
the most out of those spaces.
And sometimes that can bereally hard when the kids don't
seem to value what's happeningthere, they don't see like the
worth necessarily.
And so, if I can point them,point them to say, okay, look to
your future and now, how canyou use what's right in front of
you there now to boost you towhere you want to go.
(22:32):
Man, that it's again.
It's just transformative.
Stephanie Shafer (22:36):
It is to watch that light bulb go off in a
student.
Wow, so rewarding, yes, okay.
So, as I'm listening and peoplemight be thinking as well, okay
, we can't all get in a bus andgo to a coffee shop, so what are
we going to be doing online,where students have that same
type of exposure?
Jen Sullivan (22:54):
So this is where we're going to have to figure
out where are spaces in yourcommunity that your kids can
plug into, and also, are therespaces within North Star where
our kids can plug into?
So I think it'd be really coolif we had different kinds of
(23:15):
like online vendor shops thatour students could come and
purchase from.
I'm thinking things liket-shirts or stickers.
You know anybody that has acricket.
These days you can make asticker and so where are we
going to have spaces where kidscan be creating whether it's
(23:35):
digitally at home, or maybethey're even going to come up
with something that they'recreating in their home, and then
they're going to have an onlineplatform within Northstar where
other students can come andpurchase from them?
I had a student in my lastschool and she had a business
making like key chains, likemacrame key chains.
(23:58):
She did key chains, earrings,and then they had stickers, and
I love this idea that whatstudents are already interested
in terms of things that theylike to do, giving them a space
where they can sell it.
Now, there's a whole lot to tryand sift through to make that
happen, and so there are a lotof details that we'll have to
(24:20):
iron out.
But another space, too, isthere's so many things that are
um, that are digital skills thatpeople will pay for.
I mean, this morning I was eventhinking I need to get a picture
for you know this place, youknow to update my LinkedIn
profile or something I'm like ohI just wish I could like take
(24:41):
my picture and that someonewould edit it and make it look
good, cause I don't know how todo that, but maybe we have
students within our North starstudent body who are really good
, um, photo editors and so if wehad a space where they could
use those skills for North Star,for students, for parents, and
(25:03):
help solve that problem for ourNorth Star families community
body there, and that's a spacewhere they could be utilizing
some of those skills in abusiness-making type of venture.
(25:24):
Uh, some of those skills in abusiness making type of venture.
But maybe Sarah isn't good withphoto editing but maybe Sarah
is really good with marketing.
So maybe Sarah partners up withJoe and Joe does the photo
editing and Sarah does themarketing, and now we've got a
collaborative experiencehappening where we have one
venture of photo editing but wehave lots of students working
(25:44):
together for the different areasof that business.
Stephanie Shafer (25:48):
Yeah, wow, so cool.
And as you're talking, I'mthinking, oh, we could use this
area or this area.
There's so many ways to getinvolved.
Yes, of North Star, but that'sgoing to be new for me.
Jen Sullivan (26:00):
So this is where I'm going to really lean in to
you guys who have been embeddedin Northstar and just the
creativity of other people,because again, I recognize that
this is a new space for me andso I'm going to have to kind of
start thinking big and thinkingoutside the box.
And, honestly, one of thereally cool experiences with
(26:23):
this is that in our curriculumwe have a whole kind of
four-step process where studentswork through like, let's say,
they now have their problem,which is their opportunity for
their business.
We're going to actually walkthem through a four-step process
for how do we actually takethis and lay out a business?
(26:43):
The process starts withideation.
So once I find my problem, I'mgoing to get really creative and
really curious about the ideaof setting up a business to
solve this problem.
Then, once we come up with anidea, then we'll talk about how
does this actually create into abusiness?
So then we'll have a creationphase and again the students are
(27:04):
working through this four-stepprocess before they even edit
their first photo.
So, ideation, creation.
Then they launch it and withinthat launch, uh, what we talk
about as a MVP, a minimum viableproduct we want to have some
(27:24):
sort of like prototype, um, thisidea of uh, this is my thing
that I'm selling, this is myventure that I'm tackling, and
we're just going to start doingit, because entrepreneurs are
biased for acting.
They just get out there and dothat.
They don't wait until it'sperfect before they start, they
just get out there so we launchand then from that launch it's
(27:46):
kind of launch, test, fix,launch, again test, fix, test
and fix and test and fix.
And then from there we alsothink about how do we grow the
business.
So the fourth stage is growth,and the students are going to
get to bring their creativeideas to the class and it's not
going to just be me saying thisis what you're going to do, and
(28:07):
this is what you're going to do,and this is what you're going
to do.
They are going to get to bringtheir ideas to me too, and so
that they can have somethingthat they're passionate and
excited about, that aligns withtheir mission, vision, values
and skills that they have.
Stephanie Shafer (28:24):
Hey, so exciting.
One thing.
When you said perfection,entrepreneurs, don't wait.
I thought at Northstar.
Sometimes we have a lot ofstudents that are perfectionists
and they might spend too muchtime, which causes them to get
behind on certain assignments orcourses.
So this would be great even forthat aspect to learn.
(28:44):
Okay, everything doesn't haveto be perfect.
You get in, you try, you moveon.
Yeah, that just jumped out atme.
Jen Sullivan (28:52):
Absolutely, absolutely.
One of the phrases that Ireally cling to, because I call
myself a recovering um, arecovering perfectionist Um.
But it's so important that inthis new mindset that we are
valuing progress over perfection.
It's it's not just about likegetting to the finish line, it
(29:17):
is about seeing where I am todayand that next week I want to be
further towards my goal.
It doesn't mean that I'm notgoing to make mistakes, because
everybody's going to makemistakes in this class.
Everyone is going to make amistake and that's pay.
We want those mistakes becauseit's in those mistakes that we
learn how to fix it, we learnhow to pivot, we learn that real
(29:41):
life lesson of oops.
I'm not going to do that again,and not because Mrs Sullivan
told me not to, but because Isaw the consequence and the
result of that action.
Yeah, progress over perfectionjust has to be so much of our
mindset because, again, ourtechnology has answers and they
(30:01):
have information and they haveeverything that we need right at
our fingertips.
So, as a human being, anymore Idon't need to be perfect,
because my phone can be perfectfor me.
Essentially, I, as a human,need to be so focused on
progress and how can I improveand grow?
Stephanie Shafer (30:22):
Yeah, so important.
Love, love, all the things thatstudents are going to get to
learn and experience andprogress over perfection is so
true.
And it doesn't matter how oldyou are we don't stop failing.
We do not stop failing.
I probably fail more in myolder age.
Jen Sullivan (30:40):
But let's fail forward.
Failing forward means I'm still.
It's okay that I still makemistakes, but I'm making
mistakes that are different fromthe ones that I've already made
.
Stephanie Shafer (30:52):
Yeah yeah, so good.
All right, so we'll wrap it upwith the conference.
You just returned from moretraining from Stephen, so what
did you take away that fired youup the most, and how is it
going to shape your teaching atNorthstar?
Jen Sullivan (31:07):
Yeah.
So one thing that I thought wasreally interesting was that, as
I was walking through thiscurriculum again, this training
was a deep dive into thecurriculum that I had just spent
a year teaching, so therewasn't a whole lot of new from
it, because I had alreadytrained on it.
I'd already taught it one yearand now I'm hearing it again.
(31:30):
But what I think was reallyimportant was twofold.
So one is just kind of a deeperpassion for the oh yeah of this
curriculum, just a deeperexcitement and agreement that
this is what education needs.
Our education system cannotstay the same as what it's been
(31:53):
for the last 10, 15, 20 years.
Our world is different, ourstudents are different because
of it, and our education needsto meet their needs, so it has
to is different.
Our students are differentbecause of it, and our education
needs to meet their needs, soit has to be different.
So I have a ton of just likeenthusiasm and like deep
agreement for what I'm teaching.
But what was really exciting atthis training was that there
(32:14):
were over 20 other educatorsthat were here going through
this with me, and so now I'vegot personally, I've got a
resource of 20 other educatorsthat are across the nation doing
entrepreneurship in theirschools and their ideas.
I mean, we have a group textthread going on now where we're
(32:37):
all just encouraging one anotherand supporting one another,
throwing out ideas, or hey, I'mstruggling with this man.
I'm so ready to tap into theseknowledgeable leaders in other
schools, as I'm stepping into anew environment myself, so one
of the things that I 100% knowis that I don't know everything,
(32:58):
and so I want to be really goodat utilizing my resources.
So I've come away from thiswith not only a ton more
resources from Stephen, and so Ihave access to all of these
tools and documents andchecklists and things like that,
but I also have access to nowall these other educators, and
(33:19):
so I'm really, really thankfulfor that.
Stephanie Shafer (33:23):
Yeah, and that's so important.
I think, as we think abouteducation changing everyone,
every school does not have timeto do the same thing More
sharing, more collaboration,more encouraging one another and
helping.
And I think at Converge 2025,where I met Stephen, I saw that
in educators and it wasn't therethe last few years.
(33:46):
There is excitement and thereis light and encouraging one
another and helping one anotherand staying in contact.
Yeah, so I love, love, lovethat.
All right.
For any students or parentsthat might be on the fence about
this course, whether or notthey should take it, what would
you say?
Jen Sullivan (34:03):
One thing I would say is that, um, adults, jobs,
employers they all agree that itseems like right now, students,
more so than ever, are.
They're labeling them asfragile.
We have fragile kids who don'tknow how to deal with the
(34:27):
difficulties of life after thehigh school bubble, and so I
want you to hear that again.
This is.
This program is not just aboutpushing out kids that are going
to start businesses.
This program is aboutdeveloping students as
individuals who are what we arenow turning, as anti-fragile
(34:51):
Students that can fail and failforward.
They can fail and not break.
They can have this idea ofgrowth.
They can have the internalfortitude to pursue goals that
are long-term goals.
They're allowed to see in thefuture and delay gratification
(35:14):
because they're working towardsa goal.
These are all things that,again, every student needs.
Every student needs this, andwhat we're learning here will
apply into every single class,every single job field, to every
(35:35):
single class, every single jobfield, anything that anybody
would want to do.
This.
I kind of told my students I'mlike it's kind of like it's it's
not a self-help class, but it'slike a personal development
class.
I mean, think about how a Biblestudy you, you enter into a
Bible study, assuming thatyou're going to read scripture
and grow and develop personallybecause of your community and
(35:57):
because of the learning and thetime spent in God's word.
This class is like that.
It's like Bible study, butwe're also going to be talking
about business-y elements.
But don't get me wrong.
Again, there's going to beBible in this.
There's biblical worldviewssaturated through this content,
(36:19):
but it is about preparingstudents for what life is like
outside of high school.
Stephanie Shafer (36:25):
Yeah, and one of my biggest things I took away
from the training I went to tosteward God's kingdom, his
resources, not about makingmoney and everything that might
go with that, but what you dohave at the moment and then what
you do gain in the future, howto steward that well and what
that looks like and what thatmeans, all right.
(36:45):
So I'm excited we're not makinga perfect course, a perfect
track, a perfect program, likewhatever this develops.
We're going to be learningtogether and failing forward and
excited about it and just, yeah, trying new things out,
celebrating what God's doing,all the students he's bringing,
gifted each one, and so walkingforward in love, celebration his
(37:09):
kingdom purposes here.
And I love it because God hasgiven all of our faculty and
staff so many students that weget to steward well through
discipleship, through givingthem these opportunities and
skills and loving them, and so,yeah, we're stewarding that
together.
I'm so glad that you're onboard to help with that and be a
part of, yeah, this incrediblenew time, new chapter in North
(37:33):
Stars history.
Jen Sullivan (37:35):
Thank you, it is an honor.
It is an honor and a privilegeto be starting these classes
here for the North Starcommunity.
I am just eager to get going.
I'm so much just like chompingon the bit, like let's go, like
I to, let's get who who's goingto be in my class.
I want to learn their names, Iwant to learn what they like to
(37:55):
do and let's start.
Let's start doing stuff.
I'm just so excited.
Stephanie Shafer (38:00):
Yeah, and so some people might be thinking
what I thought it was online,you never saw people.
But at Northstar we haveopportunities for some of our
courses to be live and we callthose NSA Live, and so this is
one of our NSA Live courses.
So your students will bemeeting with other students in
person and then meeting outsideof those already scheduled times
(38:23):
, collaborating.
So lots of good time to takeonline course but also mix it up
and be with people, and sogreat, great opportunity coming.
Jen Sullivan (38:33):
Absolutely.
Yeah, I'm really excited as Istarted to think about how we're
going to shape the live classtime period versus the other
four days of the week whenthey're doing assignments, and
some of those assignments aregoing to be to get with their
group and to have a conversationaround this topic.
I mean so they are going to beworking and communicating and
(38:57):
collaborating.
We keep saying that word, butit's so important collaborating
with their classmates.
Stephanie Shafer (39:05):
Yeah, and some kids might be.
I don't know if I want to talkonline or be seen or whatever
you know.
But don't be scared, becauseeverybody's going to have those
feelings and that's just whatit's all about.
We're doing something new,getting out of our comfort zone,
and that's where that growthand the grit and all the things
they're going to be built in.
So thank you so much forjoining me today, super excited
(39:26):
to be here.
Jen Sullivan (39:26):
Thank you, I'm so, so grateful for the opportunity
and I cannot wait to see whoGod brings into these classes.
Stephanie Shafer (39:34):
Thank you so much for listening today.
If you have any questions forour guest or would like
information about Northstar,please email us.
At podcast at NSA dot school,we love having guests on our
show and getting to hear theirstories.
If you have anyone in mind thatyou think would be a great
guest to feature, please emailus and let us know.
And don't forget to subscribeso you don't miss out on
(40:01):
upcoming stories.
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