It's business

as usual for the executives and employees of Star International.

Pending orders,

an upcoming board meeting and plans for community projects including a

blood drive are just a few of the agenda items addressed by Courtney Cranford,

chief executive officer at the morning meeting.

Dressed in

navy shirts embroidered with the company logo, Star International's team

could pass for any group of employees on casual Friday. The only difference

is the location of the company's home office, and the average age of its

board of directors... 17.

Now in its

sixth year of operation, Star International is a student-owned and operated

business based at Sandy Creek High School. Official hours of operation

are between 8:30 and 9:40 a.m., but overtime is not only expected, it's

anticipated.

The 24 young

men and women who run Star International are all seniors. They were hand

picked from a field of 60 students to run the company for a year as an

integral part of their international business and economics classes, taught

Students are

selected based on their ability to be "team players," Smith

said. He looks for students who are cooperative, honest, hard working

and dependable; basically the same characteristics an employer would seek

in a prospective employee. In return, the students are given the responsibility

of running a trading company that exports goods to their partner school

in Ayr, Scotland.

The Scots,

who run the Tartan Trader Club, send over pewter jewelry, candy and traditional

plaid accessories like scarves and hats for sale by Star's enterprising

students and receive a varied assortment of products including makeup,

pecan candies and novelty items from their American counterparts.

The students

involved consider it a wonderful opportunity to be involved in Star International.

"It's good to meet a lot of local business contacts," said Evan

Smola, who co-chairs Star International's capital funds team. The notion

of making money on the venture is appealing, too, Smola conceded.

Each student

purchases at least three shares of Star International stock, which sells

for $10 per share. Depending on the success of the year's sales, students

can increase their initial investment significantly and receive the profits

in cash at the end of the school year.

Cranford anticipates

taking the business in a new direction this year, by introducing a catalog

to market their Scottish wares. Currently, research is being conducted

to determine the cost of printing.

Many students

who had not considered business as a post-high school option "lose

themselves" in this class and eventually major in some facet of business,

be it international business, corporate law or management, Smith noted.

Star International's

web site is being overhauled and will be up and running as soon as possible,

reported Andrea VanBuren, who heads the technology team with Janson Webb.

Look for Star International imports at the fall Sandy Creek arts and crafts

fair, or contact Star International by e-mail at [email protected].