As seventh-graders in Searcy, long before Rob Bell went into the advertising business, he worked to create commercials for a product he made up.
"It was for a unit in reading on propaganda," says Bell, who worked on the project way back then alongside his now business partner Isaac Alexander. They are two of the three partners in the Little Rock advertising firm Eric Rob and Isaac. "So in it they taught all the different techniques and styles of advertising. At that point, I had no idea really what the ad business was."
Bell wonders how much earlier he might have arrived at his chosen profession if that sort of activity had been the norm. He sees sharp parallels within the possibilities that might have been and the ones being handed to students today through lessons provided by Economics Arkansas. That organization provides standards-based resources and professional development that educators can use to teach their pre-k through 12th-grade students about economics, personal finance and the free-enterprise system.
Bell has served on the board at Economics Arkansas since 2010.
"They were one of our first clients," he says. "I love everything Economics Arkansas does. One of the things I love about them is that they have these real life, kind of fun scenarios, where kids are acting like this, and when I see this kid's pitch, it reminds me that, man, I would have totally been all over that if I was that age."
Economics Arkansas is gearing up for the 2024 Leadership in Free Enterprise (LIFE) Awards Luncheon, set for 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. March 27 at the DoubleTree Hotel, where three LIFE awards will be presented to "honor those who promote success in the free market." Individual tickets are $125.
"It's a great event and we always stay on time," Bell says. "That's important for our busy Arkansas people."
This year's honorees are Sissy Jones, Charles Morgan and First Security Bank.
There will be video tributes for each honoree, along with testimonials highlighting their accomplishments and contributions.
Jones is known for starting Sissy's Log Cabin in Pine Bluff back in 1970, and Morgan is former chairman and CEO of Acxiom and current CEO of First Orion.
"Sissy and Charles have both done amazing things in Arkansas," Bell says. "And this is the first time we have honored an institution in addition to some individuals and I'm thrilled about First Security because they are very close to my heart."
When he and Alexander started the firm 20 years ago, he says, he went to First Security for help.
"Not not only did they help us fund it they were actually my first client and they still are a client today," he says. "They believed in me when I was 27 years old with this kind of a big idea and dream and they believed in my partners, so it's kind of an Economics Arkansas kind of success story in my opinion."
First Security recently partnered with Gibbs International Magnet Elementary to open a bank within the school, with students as tellers and security guards. The partnership is meant to teach students how banks operate and about how they can save their money.
Bell enjoys hearing from students who have benefited from Economics Arkansas' programming, through lessons in the classroom and beyond.
"They pick a book every year that everybody's going to read and in that book there will be things with economic principals within them," Bell says. "You know, about financial literacy and what that really means about turning a profit and cost of goods and all that stuff. And they get it. I've heard kids stand up and they just start rattling stuff off and you're blown away."
First Security is sponsoring the Personal Finance Challenge, a competition for high school students hosted by Economics Arkansas and the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis that involves students demonstrating their knowledge of personal finance through a one-day challenge. Teams will receive a case study on Tuesday and will be expected to collaborate and prepare a 6-minute slide presentation based on it. Their presentations will be due March 27. Five finalists will present their content on April 10.
The Youth Enterprise Showcase, a competition for students in fifth through eighth grades, took place earlier this year, giving students a chance to work together to create a business pitch, offering realistic, hands-on entrepreneurial education.
The Stock Market Game, for students in fourth through 12th grades, allows students and teachers to invest $100,000 in virtual stocks, bonds and mutual funds in competition with others in their regions and age categories.
"Economics Arkansas, in a nutshell, we equip the teachers to implement economics in the classroom," Bell says. "We always say that we're trying to take the 'eek' out of economics. People might think that's something you just learn in high school or college, but they take it all the way down to pre-k. They teach how to integrate it into other subjects, not just economics as a standalone. Economics is about decision-making and it needs to be in every aspect of curriculum that the kids have."
Rob Bell, co-founder of Eric Rob and Isaac, serves on the board of Economics Arkansas. He is looking forward to the 2024 Leadership in Free Enterprise (LIFE) Awards Luncheon, set for March 27. (Arkansas Democrat-Gazette/Cary Jenkins)