Huntington Business Students Vie for $30,000 Bonus

Huntington High School’s Business Management and Human Relations course has drawn the interest of many students this year. The half-credit, one semester course meets daily and is available to students in grades 9-12.

“For this class students began by choosing between four different industries; automotive, real estate, food and beverage or goods and services,” teacher Bryan Outsen said. “They then had to create a business and sell their goods and services to their classmates for the full semester. After researching costs, profit margin, and inventory, every Friday students wrote checks to each other for their goods, paid their employees payroll and tracked their business income for 12 straight weeks.”

Students took their responsibilities and assignments seriously. “Their final project was to construct a brick and mortar location in order for us to make our own Main Street in Huntington,” Mr. Outsen said. “Today and tomorrow teachers and staff will be voting on the best construction and the winner will get a $30,000 bonus for their company.”

The course is designed to “help students acquire the skills necessary to make informed decisions, as well as provide them with information vital to realistic career choices,” according to the course catalog. “We will make students aware of the economics of work and they will develop an understanding of the marketplace. In addition, we will analyze your likes, dislikes, unique characteristics, competencies, and weaknesses with the intention of adding to the students’ self-awareness. Problem solving and decision-making skills will also be taught.”

Mr. Outsen is a graduate of Hofstra University where he obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in the mathematics of actuarial science. He earned a Master of Arts in special education with a math concentration at Relay Graduate School of Education in New York City.

Prior to coming to Huntington UFSD, Mr. Outsen worked as a tutor and financial advisor; as a special education and math teacher at Uncommon Charter High School in Brooklyn and as a math teacher at St. John the Baptist High School in West Islip.