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Innovative Educators

Innovative ideas and programs are what turns information into learning. Meet our innovative Educators – educators who have found new ways to teach practical money skills in the classroom.

April 2009

Natasha Cross

EYE For Change

As a high school student, Natasha Cross had no idea what she wanted be, what field she wanted to end up in. What she did know was that she wasn’t going to work for someone else. She was going to be the boss. Today, as the sole paid employee at a nonprofit organization that works to empower Baltimore youth, Natasha has certainly achieved her goal. Not only is she the founder and Executive Director of EYE (Engaging Youth Entrepreneurs) For Change, she’s frequently the office secretary and at times one among many volunteers.

It started in her sophomore year of college at Baltimore’s Morgan State University when Cross and a couple of friends, finding that they had a lot of time on their hands, decided to revive the Entrepreneurial Society, a Morgan State club that had been defunct for the previous 3-5 years. Natasha spent the second half of her four years at Morgan State as the Vice President and President of the Entrepreneurial Society, working closely with entrepreneurs and small business owners in the Baltimore community to bring free entrepreneurship workshops into the local schools.

In 2005 as graduation loomed, Natasha still had no idea what she wanted to do after college, but her Entrepreneurship Society experience had planted a seed. She knew that she would like to continue to teach young people about entrereneurship, and she hit upon the idea of a conference.

"I tried to come up with something that would be fun and at the same time educational for kids, and the first thing that popped into my head was a field trip! What could be better than a field trip to a college campus where kids could see what the educational life was like and learn about entrepreneurship!"

So with a shoestring budget and word-of-mouth marketing, Natasha coordinated the very first EYE For Change Conference. It took place in April 2006 during her senior year, in a swelteringly hot campus building where roughly 200 young attendees spent a day in a variety of entrepreneurial-themed workshops.

EYE For Change has since evolved from a single conference to a nonprofit organization committed to developing Baltimore’s youth into future business leaders. The annual conference in April is very much the centerpiece of the organization, but it has expanded to offer a variety of workshops in the areas of entrepreneurship, financial literacy, and leadership. EYE For Change also runs a 6-week summer camp for youth that features guest speakers, leadership activities, field trips, and a community service project.

Outside of the annual conference and summer camp, Natasha Cross finds herself busily running an organization that regularly engages students in after-school financial literacy programs and brings speakers into schools and recreation centers twenty weeks out of each school year. Natasha got into entrepreneurship because she had a lot of time on her hands. She’ll be the first to tell you that she no longer has that problem.

Learn more about EYE For Change at www.eyeforchange.org.