Junior Achievement Announces Winners of Annual Stock Market Challenge

News Release
May 21, 2025

For more information, contact:
Alycia Ivancie
Program Director
716-853-1381, ext. 215
aivancie@jawny.org

Junior Achievement Announces Winners of Annual Stock Market Challenge

(Buffalo, NY) – During the school year, over 1,000 WNY students have participated in two separate virtual competitions of trading through their experience in the Junior Achievement Virtual Stock Market Challenge. Students represented seventeen schools from across WNY. Leaderboards were dynamic and shared weekly using the hashtag #JAWNYStockMarketChallenge.

The winners of the virtual competitions were:

Fall 2024: Justin Lombardo, St. Francis High School
Spring 2025: Nicholas Krey, Kenmore East High School

The culminating in-person event, the JA Stock Market Challenge Championship, allowed participating schools to be represented by their top performing students from earlier rounds. The championship round event engaged 20 student teams competing for top honors and the prestigious “Bull Trophy,” among other prizes. During this fast-paced competition, students engaged in 60 days of trading, represented by 1 minute per day, and starting with a $500,000 portfolio.

Prior to the JA Stock Market Challenge, JA provides their JA Take Stock in Your Future curriculum to introduce students to basic concepts about how the market works and the impact of current events. The curriculum also includes a series of self-guided extension activities for students to engage in deeper learning about the stock market and investing.

Wells Fargo is the Presenting Sponsor of this unique and interactive JA learning experience.

At the close of the championship competition, Junior Achievement of Western New York (JAWNY) is pleased to recognize the following schools:

1^st place: Clarence High School - Clarence High School Team #4 (Arden Jalal, Timothy Simard, Patrick Mohr)
2^nd place: Kenmore East High School - The Kenmore Slayers (Nicholas Krey, Michael Pawlowski, Nolan Pryo)
3^rd place: Clarence High School - Chopped United (Andrew Cappellucci, Chris Cappellucci, Noah Garson, Erik Michel)

Arden Jalal of Clarence High School said, “Participating in the Junior Achievement of Western New York Stock Market Challenge was very exciting and valuable. The in-person competition was a very fast-paced trading game that tested our decision-making skills under pressure. Winning the challenge was amazing, but the way JA made learning about the stock market fun was even more valuable. Before this, many of us didn’t know much about stocks, but the challenge showed us how interesting investing and finance can be. I’d definitely do it again!”

Participating Schools:

Erie County: Amherst High School, Clarence High School, Depew High School, East Aurora High School, Hamburg High School, Kenmore East High School, Maryvale High School, Lafayette High School, St. Francis High School, St. Mary’s High School, Sweet Home High School, West Seneca East High School

Niagara County: Lockport High School, Niagara Falls High School

Chautauqua County: Cassadaga Valley High School, Falconer High School, Jamestown High School

This program is not possible without support from our partners: Wells Fargo, Presenting Sponsor; additional support from: Delta Air Lines; JP Morgan Chase, HSBC Bank USA N.A.; Bryant & Stratton College; WSF Industries, Inc; Zgoda & Associates CPAs, PC; Bank on Buffalo; Tops Friendly Markets; Broadview Federal Credit Union; KeyBank, N.A.; KPMG; PwC; Reid/Crosby’s; West Herr Auto Group; Perry’s Ice Cream; Deloitte; Evans Bank; Lawley; Lippes Mathias LLP; National Fuel; Northwest Bank; Phillips Lytle LLP; Seneca Foods Foundation; Excelsior Orthopaedics; Financial Trust Federal Credit Union; Freed Maxick CPA’s; L&M Wealth Management; MidCity Office Furniture; and The Lenna Foundation;

Proceeds from the JA Virtual Stock Market Challenge support Junior Achievement’s financial literacy, entrepreneurship, and career & work-readiness pathway programs for kindergarten-12 grade students. For more information about Junior Achievement programs, visit www.jawny.org.