Missouri afterschool programs of all sizes and types can give their students the chance to compete in a national youth pitch competition that celebrates creativity, problem-solving, and innovation – the Mott Million Dollar Challenge.
Any program can utilize Mott’s comprehensive resources, offering opportunities for afterschool programs that haven’t coveredentrepreneurship or business curriculum.
Students in grades K–12 can develop and pitch ideas that improve their schools, homes, or communities, whether through a product, service, or social solution. MASN wants programs across Missouri to know that support and resources are available at every step of the way.
“Missouri afterschool programs are uniquely positioned to help youth explore their ideas and see themselves as capable problem-solvers,” said Terri Foulkes, Executive Director of the Missouri AfterSchool Network. “With the comprehensive tools and resources provided, any program can guide students through the competition, giving the students the confidence to share their ideas and take ownership of their hard work.”
How Your Program Can Support Students
Afterschool programs can easily incorporate the Mott Million Pitch Challenge into existing activities or use the available resources to guide students. Programs don’t need a background in entrepreneurship to prepare students for this competition!
Capitalize your programming opportunities. Start by asking, how much time do you have to prepare students for the competition? The best part: the Mott Million Dollar Challenge can be incorporated into any program, no matter how much time you have.
- 0 minutes: Students already engaged in STEAM, service-learning, science fair, or other problem-solving activities can enter immediately with their ideas. In fact, if students submitted a pitch in for the 2025 MASN and/or YEI Youth Pitch Challenges, they could resubmit their video for the Mott Million Dollar Challenge! (And all new pitches will also be entered into the 2026 MASN Youth Pitch Challenge!)
- 15–30 minutes: Use a single session to play Wacky Inventions from VentureLab or use grade-level Extensions (K–4, 5–8, 9–12) to create a business idea quickly.
- 30–120 minutes: Use the Pitch Toolkit from YEI across 2–5 sessions to guide students through developing and presenting a pitch.
- Extra activities: Visit Mizzen.org for entrepreneurship playlists with 25+ activities to deepen creativity, communication, and problem-solving skills.
- Support for submission: Use the session outline provided to prepare students for recording their 30–90 second pitch video.
Participation Details
- Who can enter: K–12 students, individually or in teams of up to three
- Submission deadline: February 27, 2026
- Prizes: Share of a $1 million total prize pool
- Finalist experience: Live pitch event and celebration in Flint, Michigan, in June 2026
The Mott Million Dollar Challenge not only recognizes student innovation but also helps programs foster confidence, creativity, and entrepreneurial thinking—key outcomes for afterschool and summer learning environments.
MASN invites all Missouri afterschool programs to take advantage of this opportunity and use the comprehensive resources to make participation simple, effective, and impactful.
- Learn more and access resources at mottmillion.org
- Video examples for each age group
- Informational webinar (Featuring a Missouri student!)
- Competition Rules
- Terms & Conditions
- Frequently Asked Questions
- For Example: What are the judges looking for, what is the time commitment, are there restrictions on how prize money can be used…
