Applied Commerce Education (ACE)

Business Innovations 10S: 

This course uses the theme of restaurants and restaurant management. Restaurants are one of the first jobs that many students get in high school so we use simulations in running lemonade stands, kiosks, and restaurant management to learn business concepts. We use print and online resources to learn the introduction to business, as well as two novels (with audiobooks) Rain: What a Paperboy Learned about Business and FISH! Revised & Re-energized to deepen our learning. Our final projects in this course include the online simulation called 'Turnaround Project' and A Design-Your-Own Food Truck Project. Do you have what it takes to save a struggling restaurant from financial ruin? Or to develop and run your own food truck? Come find out in Business Innovations 10S!

Personal Finance 20S: 

Have you ever said to yourself, "When am I going to use this in the real world?"... for this course, the answer is EVERY DAY! Learning how to make money, spend it, and save it is what this course is all about. We use Personal Finance simulations to learn how to manage our time, get a job, buy a car, improve our education, buy a house, and invest. The novels that we use in this course are The Snowman's Guide to Personal Finance and The Money Club. Our final project in this class is an online simulation called 'New Career Project' and our students play the simulation to beat the course! 

Entrepreneurship 20S: 

In this course, students run a number of different businesses through our simulation program. Have you ever thought about opening a bowling alley? Hair salon? Plumbing, Electrical, or DJ music business? This course has it all! We conduct market research, present an elevator pitch, build our team, acquire resources, invest in other students' businesses, and best of all - become a Mega Mogul Business Tycoon! What happens if you make a business decision that you regret? You learn from it! In this class, you will quickly find that the other students in the course become your greatest assets to collaborate with, ask questions to, and wrestle with businesses that just aren't turning a profit yet. Just like the way entrepreneurs collaborate with others at Chambers of Commerce, or seek consultants, your classmates become your teammates and your ticket to success! 

Creative Promotions 20S: 

Interested in learning the basics of marketing and promotions? Want to learn to design advertisements for a business? This course will combine design principles, marketing basics, and a Knowledge Matters retail clothing store business simulation to expose you to the wide world of marketing, promotions, and personal selling. Where should you locate a business? What are you going to sell? Do you know when to raise prices for hot ticket items? Do you know how to capture customers' attention and get a piece of the market share? Join us in Creative Promotions 20S to get the inside edge! 

Retailing Perspectives 30S: 

How do businesses use social media as a marketing tool?  This fall course is designed around major marketing events such as Halloween, Black Friday, Cyber Monday, holiday shopping, and the SuperBowl to show how businesses market their products and services. The first half of this course uses the online simulation program Knowledge Matters Retailing to learn the marketing mix, conduct market research, practice purchasing, and monitor inventory control.  The second half of this course uses Knowledge Matters Sports Management to perfect our retailing skills by setting ticket prices, planning parking, developing concession stands, promoting bands, and managing players. If you love simulations and marketing, this is the class for you!

Business Communications 30S *under-redevelopment for Spring 2026 

How do you write a resume and cover letter? Interview for a job? Ask for a raise? Write business documents, design business cards, and letterhead? Come to Business Communications 30S to find out! This course will use project books called Popcorn Cinema or Google Apps 4E to design a variety of business materials for a business. This course has worked with the Carman and Community Chamber of Commerce to learn how to network, set agendas, and run meetings. We have used GoVenture Job Interview simulations to practice interviewing for jobs. Our final project in this class was mock job interviews with local business owners. We've even had students offered summer employment based on these interviews in the past!  

Business Management 40S: 

If business is a game, then management is learning how to play it! This course builds connections with our local business communities. Students learn how to manage businesses from the experiences of local entrepreneurs. We use Knowledge Matters Management simulations to develop and practice skills in areas such as human resource management, operations, and cash flow. We infuse Indigenous business perspectives throughout and invite exciting guest speakers to join our class! One awesome book (and audiobook) called Boss Life chronicles the real-life year-at-a-glance business trials and tribulations of a carpentry company as it struggles to stay afloat financially. Business owner and author of Boss Life, Paul Downs, joins our class to talk about that year in his business and what he learned from his experiences. If you ever want to run your own farm, business, or medical practice, or simply learn to understand how people behave in workplaces, this is the course for you!

Marketing and Digital Commerce 40S: 

How do you get your business noticed? We cover the promotional mix, marketing mix, and planning to market your business for success! Have you ever wondered how to develop your own website? This course uses Web Design with Google Sites to build websites for three different companies. We use the online simulation program called GoVenture Digital Marketing as the introductory project in our course. In this course, you will learn about target market analysis, digital trends, and search engine optimization to take your business ideas to the next level! 

Economic Principles 40S: 

Have you ever wondered how the world works? How money, resources, and products change ownership and are impacted by global trends? Do you want to learn economics concepts through movies like Star Wars, Monsters Inc., and Back to the Future? Do you want to understand the bigger picture? If so, Economic Principles 40S is for you! This course uses examples and classic movies to animate economics concepts.