BestPrep Minnesota Business Program

North American Banking Company is proud to continue its support of BestPrep’s Minnesota Business Venture (MBV) summer youth development program by sponsoring a student participant. 

In 2025, 386 students from across Minnesota attended MBV, the highest participation in many years. Students represented 115 high schools, with nearly half coming from low-income households and two-thirds identifying as students of color. 

Hosted at the University of St. Thomas in partnership with the Schulze School of Entrepreneurship, MBV provides a week-long immersive experience designed to teach students entrepreneurial, financial, and career skills. Activities included mock interviews, breakout sessions on financial literacy and career paths, a Career Expo, and a keynote speaker. The program’s core project challenges students to form “companies” and develop a business plan to present before a panel of judges.

For Myles, the student we sponsored, the operations and budgeting seminars made a lasting impression. “I learned how to save my money at an early age and how to spend my money on things I actually need. Our RBL [Resident Business Leader] named Emily helped us come up with ideas and kept us on track for success,” he shared. 

Myles also reflected more broadly on his week at MBV: “I’ve enjoyed myself during MBV and made more connections than I ever could have imagined. It was definitely educational as I got to learn more about finance, marketing, and operations. I plan to use what I have learned to apply it for my other projects or business plans in the future.” 

North American Banking Company is grateful to play a part in supporting BestPrep’s mission and helping students like Myles discover their potential.