Surprise graduate’s essay is best in state

Recent Valley Vista High School graduate Ava Stevenson placed first in Arizona in the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association Foundation’s Spring 2024 National InvestWrite competition.

During her senior year, Stevenson took part in the Stock Market Game, a SIFMA Foundation financial education program where students invest a hypothetical $100,000 in an online portfolio of stocks, bonds, mutual funds and cash.

During the competition, she and her team developed a diversified investment portfolio aimed at securing long-term financial success

After successfully completing the Stock Market Game program, Stevenson took the next step offered by SIFMA and entered the InvestWrite Competition, a written challenge that addresses real-world financial issues and situations.

In essays, students had to analyze, think critically and problem-solve about a long-term saving and investing scenario.

Essays were judged by financial professionals, who evaluated the students’ understanding of long-term investing, diversification, the global capital markets and factors that drive investments as well as their expression of investment ideas in essay form.

Stevenson’s essay earned first place, captivating the judges with her insights into capital markets.

Stevenson and her teacher, Mitchell Pinda, were honored by the SIFMA Foundation during a special ceremony held at Valley Vista.

Stevenson is pursuing a career as a pharmacy technician. As she explains in her award-winning essay, she will be using her economic and investment knowledge to create a long-term financial plan to help fund her education.