Koch family foundations and philanthropy are grounded in the belief that free societies are the greatest generators of social progress, sustainable prosperity and well-being.

Among the 9,000 alumni of Youth Entrepreneurs Kansas is Tien Huynh, a 1999
graduate of the program who co-founded Accell Mobile in 2007. Today, Accell is
the largest authorized T-Mobile dealer in Wichita, Kan., and growing.

 

Projects

• Bill of Rights Institute
• Mercatus Center
• Youth Entrepreneurs Kansas
• David H. Koch Theater
• Great Plains Nature Center
• Koch Associate Program
• Gilder Lehrman Institute
• Hospital for Special Surgery

 

Youth Entrepreneurs Kansas was founded in 1991 in Wichita, Kan., by the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation. What started as a program for at-risk students in one Wichita high school has today expanded to 24 schools in the greater Wichita area, Topeka and Kansas City.

The mission of YEK is to provide students with business and entrepreneurial education and life-changing experiences to help them prosper and become contributing members of society. YEK hopes to create productive members of society who make their own lives and the lives of others better. Students learn to apply skills that can transform their lives, such as discipline, accountability, self-reliance, judgment, initiative, and economic and critical thinking.

Since inception, more than 9,000 students have graduated from YEK’s year-long accredited classroom program. Many have gone on to fulfill dreams of higher education and business ownership. All have come away with clearer insight into how a business is born and what it takes to succeed as an owner or an employee.

YEK is a Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation grant recipient.