Elkridge Company Gives Baltimore Youths a Lesson in Business

A group of 26 children from the Pimlico area of Baltimore City traveled to Elkridge Wednesday for a hands-on lesson in business.

Most of the students, who are members of a program called the Pimlico Dream Academy Learning Center, have an incarcerated parent, according to Yvonne McNair, the center's director.  

“This program is about character building and dream building,” said McNair.

Students were asked to build something of their own when they visited  in Elkridge on July 27, using brownies.

From their global headquarters on Marshalee Drive, ANCILE staff explained that they create, test and market software solutions to companies around the world. Staff broke this process down for the kids by presenting them with brownies and challenging groups to "design" and market the best one.

The students were separated into groups of 5 or 6 and assigned a table loaded with brownie toppings as well as some ANCILE employees to help guide them through their mission. Each group needed to design brownies that tasted good, but they also had to create a slogan and a logo so it would sell.

First, the kids worked on prototypes for their product using a variety of toppings, like Sour Patch Kids and M&Ms.

“We intentionally put some better choices for toppings out because life is all about making choices,” explained Dave Baca, ANCILE’s vice president of global support and hosting services.  

Students then used an evaluation sheet to decide which brownie was best and went to work recreating it. ANCILE staff gave some basic lessons about logos and slogans, drawing on ones the kids already knew, to help them create their own. Then students presented their ideas and anxiously awaited a verdict from the panel of judges, made up of Dream Academy mentors and ANCILE CEO Frank Lonergan.

The name of the winning brownie was the "Black and White Balance" brownie. It had a yin-yang design using only black and white toppings and its slogan was it "gives you balance." Winners received gift certificates to McDonald's.

“We want to give something back and stay connected, outside of what we do on a work basis,” said Lonergan. He was already discussing ideas such as book drives the company could do next with the kids.

The afternoon’s activities tied into community development, a concept the students have spent July focusing on, according to McNair.

Before they came to work with the ANCILE team, the kids were selling produce they grew themselves in their community garden, McNair explained. All proceeds from their sales are going to their school (Pimlico Elementary/Middle). Their brownie activity in Elkridge reinforced the lesson they have been working on, that first something must be produced and then taken to market, said McNair. 

Added Baca: "Today is about planting seeds in their minds."