Junior Achievement of Georgia to Induct Kronowitz and Leopold into Savannah Business Hall of Fame

SAVANNAH, GA — Junior Achievement of Georgia (JA of Georgia) has named Lowell Kronowitz and Stratton Leopold as the 2026 JA Savannah Business Hall of Fame Laureates.

JA of Georgia is proud to host the 26th annual gala and continue the tradition of honoring outstanding members of the Savannah business community. This black-tie event, presented by Memorial Health, will take place on Friday, November 6, 2026, at the Hyatt Regency of Savannah.

Lowell Kronowitz is a Savannah native, longtime business leader, and president of Levy Jewelers, Savannah’s only fourth-generation family-owned jewelry business. Founded in 1900, Levy Jewelers celebrated 125 years in business in 2025, with Lowell helping carry forward its legacy of expertise, service, and deep community relationships. A graduate of Hobart College with a degree in Economics and Political Science and the University of Michigan with an MBA in Finance, Lowell built his career in finance before joining Levy Jewelers. Beyond his professional leadership, he has dedicated his time to numerous civic and nonprofit organizations, including the Savannah Airport Commission, Bethesda Home for Boys, Telfair Museum of Art, United Way of the Coastal Empire, Savannah Music Festival Foundation, and The 200 Club of the Coastal Empire. Lowell and his wife, Hilary, have three children, Jack, Peter, and Amanda.

Stratton Leopold is a Savannah native, ice cream entrepreneur, Hollywood film producer, and longtime community leader. Raised in his family’s ice cream business, Stratton went on to build a more than 40-year career in the motion picture industry, ultimately serving as Vice President of Production at Paramount Pictures and producing films including Mission: Impossible III, The Sum of All Fears, and The Wolfman. Today, he carries forward the legacy of Leopold’s Ice Cream, the Savannah institution founded by his father and uncles in 1919, while continuing to share his time and resources generously with his community. Stratton is deeply involved in organizations supporting youth, veterans, and military families, including the Boy Scouts Coastal Georgia Council, Girl Scouts of Coastal Georgia, The 200 Club of the Coastal Empire, and the Sua Sponte Foundation. Through his I Pledge for Ice Cream Project, he has also helped more than 135 ice cream shops across nearly 40 states reward children for reciting the Pledge of Allegiance, extending his commitment to community well beyond Savannah.

In addition to the formal induction of Lowell and Stratton, the 26th JA Savannah Business Hall of Fame will welcome guests to a cocktail hour featuring the infamous Whiskey Wall and Wall of Wine, a seated dinner, followed by a tribute to the revolutionary programs JA of Georgia is bringing to over half of Georgia’s middle school students and beyond.

“What an honor it is to be inducting two Savannah legends,” shared Craig Tootle, Director of Development and Volunteer Opportunities for JA of Georgia in Savannah. “Lowell and Stratton are staples within the Savannah community, and their commitment to business, philanthropy, and the people who call this city home is truly inspiring.”

To learn more about the JA Savannah Business Hall of Fame, sponsorship opportunities, the laureates, or to purchase a ticket, please visit georgia.ja.org/hall-of-fame-savannah. If you are interested in becoming a sponsor of the event, please email Craig Tootle at ctootle@georgia.ja.org.

Junior Achievement of Georgia Directors Named 2026 Moxie Award Finalists

GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — Junior Achievement (JA) of Georgia is proud to announce that two employees have been named finalists for the 2026 Moxie Awards. Jennifer Ho, Senior Director of Board Relations & Special Projects, has been selected as a finalist in the On the Rise category, while Elisa Molina, Director of the JA Discovery Center Experience in Gwinnett, has been named a finalist in two categories, the Moxie Award and the Pay It Forward Award.

The Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce’s annual Moxie Awards, presented by Northeast Georgia Heath System, celebrate women whose leadership is making a lasting difference in their organizations and communities.

As Senior Director of Board Relations & Special Projects, Jennifer Ho serves as a strategic connector between JA of Georgia's leadership, Board of Directors, and community partners. Since joining the organization in 2021, she has helped support a period of significant growth, including the expansion of JA Discovery Centers across Georgia, while strengthening relationships with more than 100 board members and volunteers who help advance JA's mission. A rising leader in the metro Atlanta nonprofit community, Jennifer recently graduated from the Gwinnett Young Professionals program and has been selected for the 2027 LEAD Atlanta class.

Elisa Molina is celebrating 13 years with Junior Achievement of Georgia, having joined the organization in 2013 to help launch its first JA Discovery Center. Today, she leads the day-to-day operations and program experience of the JA Discovery Center in Gwinnett, overseeing a team dedicated to providing immersive, hands-on learning experiences for 30,000 students and over 2,000 teachers and volunteers each year. She has also championed efforts to make JA programs more accessible for Spanish-speaking students by helping translate curriculum and educational materials, ensuring more young people can benefit from JA's programs.

"Jennifer and Elisa embody what it means to lead with purpose," said John Hancock, President and CEO of Junior Achievement of Georgia. "We couldn't be more proud to see them recognized among this year's Moxie Award finalists."

Together, Jennifer and Elisa have each played an instrumental role in expanding Junior Achievement's impact, helping thousands of students develop the financial literacy, career readiness, and entrepreneurial skills needed to succeed in today's economy. In metro Atlanta alone, JA of Georgia reaches more than 62,000 students annually through programs focused on financial literacy, work and career readiness, and entrepreneurship.

The 2026 Moxie Awards winners will be announced by the Gwinnett Chamber of Commerce at its annual awards celebration. The event will feature 2025 JA Greater Augusta Business Hall of Fame Laureate, Stephanie Stuckey, as their keynote speaker. To learn more about the Moxie Awards and this year's finalists, visit https://gwinnettchamber.org/moxie-awards/.

About Junior Achievement of Georgia

Junior Achievement (JA) of Georgia is a business- integrated education partner with expertise in experiential learning that successfully develops key mindsets and skills for students to lead meaningful and successful lives. JA’s high-impact programs drive long-term outcomes in areas of financial literacy, career readiness, and fostering the entrepreneurial spirit, and are delivered by corporate and community volunteers. JA of Georgia offers multiple programs, with a focus on middle and high school students, including JA BizTown, JA Finance Park, 3DE by Junior Achievement, and the JA Dream Accelerator. JA of Georgia has locations in Metro Atlanta, Cumming, Dalton, Evans, Morrow, and Savannah. For more information, visit georgia.ja.org

Junior Achievement's Approach to AI

This article is brought to you by Junior Achievement USA.

As the nation’s leading experiential learning provider dedicated to accelerating economic mobility, Junior Achievement views AI as a challenge and an opportunity for this and future generations. Experts predict AI may eliminate as many as 300 million jobs (or possibly more) globally in the coming years, while also being used to augment many more occupations. But unlike coding, which requires the learning of hard skills to effectively navigate, AI has a low barrier of entry in the skills sense, but over time - due to challenges with reliability, security, scalability, and human-first skills like ethics - ultimately depends on people’s durable skills such as critical and creative thinking, problem solving, and continuous learning to manage effectively. These are the same indelible skills promoted by Junior Achievement to accelerate economic mobility. The greatest strength JA brings to the AI conversation isn’t simply how to work with AI, but how to succeed in a world being reshaped by AI.

This subject is top of mind for education leaders. According to a March 2026 of these leaders (superintendents, chief academic officers, curriculum directors) by Basinait Insights on behalf of Junior Achievement, 73 percent believe it is very or extremely important for education partners working with them to teach human advantage skills (critical and creative thinking, problem-solving, etc.), alongside AI literacy skills. Additionally, 93 percent believe it is very or extremely important to emphasize the ethical use of AI among students. Additionally, 93 percent believe it is important for such organizations to emphasize the ethical use of AI among students.

It’s necessary to think of JA’s approach to AI from two perspectives: primarily as a touchpoint of our purpose, given our mission, and secondarily as a functional necessity, as a resource-constrained nonprofit. For the latter, JA sees AI as a powerful force-multiplying tool and has begun adopting AI resources in the development of our learning experiences, marketing efforts, and IT support structures. But for the former, it’s imperative that we educate today’s students that working with AI doesn’t begin and end with a prompt.