Got ideas? Send them my way to <\/strong>news@lookoutlocal.com<\/strong><\/a> with \u201cBusiness News\u201d in the subject line.<\/strong><\/p>\n Third graders get firsthand look at entrepreneurship through Gateway School program<\/p>\n Nine-year-old Nakoa Leung-Tao hasn\u2019t decided what he wants to be when he grows up, but owning a bookstore is among the options he\u2019s considering after getting a chance to learn from Two Birds Books<\/a> owner Gary Butler.<\/p>\n Leung-Tao and his fellow third graders at Gateway School<\/a> in Santa Cruz recently had the opportunity to gain deeper insight into what running a local business looks like, thanks to an annual program now in its 36th year. Each year, students like Leung-Tao are partnered with local business owners and employees; the students interview the business owners and report their findings to their classmates. It\u2019s a chance for them to not just learn about running a business, but also about their community, said teacher Kaia Huseby. The students also get to hone their writing and communication skills and become more comfortable speaking with adults, she said.\u00a0<\/p>\n Each student gets to pick the business owner or employee they want to interview. The only restrictions are that it must be a locally owned business; no international or national chains. This year, the school\u2019s 25 third graders picked local businesses that ranged from Waves & Fades Barbershop to Game Santa Cruz<\/a>, the Santa Cruz City Youth Soccer Club and Cameron Marks<\/a>, a boutique on the Westside of Santa Cruz. Students typically pick businesses they have a connection with \u2013 a restaurant they enjoy eating at or a store they go to with their family. For Leung-Tao, an avid reader and frequent patron, Two Birds Books in Pleasure Point was a no-brainer.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe bookstore is really, really close to my house and it has most of the books I like,\u201d the soon-to-be fourth grader said. \u201cI\u2019ve been there a bunch of times.\u201d<\/p>\n Leung-Tao said that interviewing Butler made him think that owning a bookstore would be a great career, especially with the chance to read in the downtime between dealing with customers. But he also thought that processing credit cards seemed really hard.\u00a0<\/p>\n Butler, who started the bookstore with his wife, Denise Silva, in late 2020, said he was flattered to be picked to participate in the third grader\u2019s project and impressed that an elementary school student was interested in a bookstore. He was especially impressed by how Leung-Tao conducted his interview, taking careful notes and really absorbing what he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n It\u2019s those communication skills that Huseby thinks are one of the most important takeaways of this yearly program, which she\u2019s been participating in since she started teaching at Gateway 17 years ago.<\/p>\n \u201cI love seeing the kids\u2019 excitement and motivation, even just in choosing a business and thinking about which business they want to spend some time studying,\u201d she said. \u201cI love seeing their journey from feeling nervous about the project [in the beginning] to the end, when they write and present their final report \u2026 that\u2019s thrilling for me as a teacher to see.\u201d<\/p>\n Starting in March, the students pick their business and engage their families for help in setting up interviews. They\u2019re allowed some help with note-taking, but Huseby and her fellow third-grade teacher, Sarah Hernandez, really encourage the students to do the actual interviews themselves. They\u2019re given a list of eight questions to focus on, including \u201cwhat do you do on a day-to-day basis?\u201d and \u201cwhat is most challenging about this business?\u201d Along the way, students share their experiences and tricks of the trade with their peers and in May, they present their reports to their classmates and share a copy with the business owners they interviewed.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe students learn confidence through the interview process,\u201d Huseby said. \u201cIt\u2019s learning that you can go out into the community and ask people questions and listen carefully and learn so much about how a business works.\u201d<\/p>\n For the business owners who participate, like Butler, it\u2019s also a way to forge connections with some of the community\u2019s youngest members and inspire their own entrepreneurial dreams.<\/p>\n ICYMI: Santa Cruz Warriors\u2019 sleek new arena gets downtown neighbors talking A major expansion of downtown Santa Cruz<\/a> includes a planned new home for the Santa Cruz Warriors. The proposed venue <\/a>would replace the Warriors\u2019 current home at Kaiser Permanente Arena, with a new 180,000-square-foot structure that would increase seating capacity by almost 500 seats.\u00a0<\/p>\n Last week, photojournalist Kevin Painchaud hit the streets to see what residents think of the proposal, which the team recently shared conceptual plans for. Check out his video here<\/a>.<\/p>\n You can see all of our recent coverage of the changes happening in downtown Santa Cruz here.<\/a><\/p>\n Ch-ch-changes: Openings, closings and other developments<\/p>\n Got hires, promotions, or departures to report? Send them to news@lookoutlocal.com<\/a> with the subject line \u201cCareer changes.\u201d<\/p>\n What\u2019s new on the Lookout Job Board<\/a><\/p>\n Want more?<\/strong>\u00a0Browse all openings on our\u00a0job\u00a0board.<\/a> | Hiring?<\/strong> Post your job today!<\/a><\/p>\n Looking at the numbers Save the date\u00a0<\/p>\n Add your business or networking events to Lookout\u2019s free public calendar, BOLO. Click here to add your event.<\/a><\/p>\n Business news worth reading<\/p>\n Have something to say? Lookout welcomes letters to the editor, within our policies, from readers. Guidelines here<\/a>.<\/strong><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/2025-05-20-Gary-Butler-from-Two-Birds-Bookstore.jpg\")
Two Birds Books co-owner Gary Butler. Credit: Kevin Painchaud \/ Lookout Santa Cruz<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/025-05-13-SC-Warriors-renderings3.jpg\")
The Santa Cruz Warriors unveiled conceptual drawings of a proposed new arena at the May 13 city council meeting. Credit: Santa Cruz Warriors<\/p>\n\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/2025-05-22-Emilie-and-the-Frenchies-1.jpg\")
The cute and cheerful interior of Emilie and the Frenchies in Aptos. Credit: Kevin Painchaud \/ Lookout Santa Cruz<\/p>\n\n
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