About Us
High-Impact After School Learning Experience
The FLEA Advantage program equips students with essential knowledge and practical skills to thrive in the real world. We empower them with critical business competencies, including strategy, execution, people management, and cash flow management. Through classroom instruction and hands-on experience in acquiring, transforming, and managing a virtual business, students gain valuable insights into sales, marketing, financial planning, product development, staffing, accounting, and customer service.
The Origin of FLEA in the Words of It's Founder
The idea for the Future Leaders Entrepreneurs Academy, or FLEA, began with a personal experience that taught me a powerful lesson about potential, perseverance, and opportunity. It all started when my oldest son graduated from high school. He wasn’t the star student—he had average grades and didn’t go straight to college. However, he had a passion for basketball and had spoken to numerous college coaches throughout high school. Unfortunately, no Division 1 schools picked him up, which was a challenging moment for him.
As a father, I wanted to help him find his path. So, I made him a deal: I would invest in him to start a business. The idea? He would help other high school athletes connect with college coaches, allowing them to showcase their talent in ways he didn’t fully experience. For the next year, he poured himself into this business, learning what it took to lead, manage, and build something from the ground up. Then, something incredible happened. He received an offer to become a student manager at a Division 1 school. It was an opportunity that combined his love for basketball with the skills he had developed running his business.
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Four years later, he graduated from that D1 school with above-average grades. But more importantly, he had honed leadership and business skills that would set him apart. Today, he’s a key player in a national start-up, leading the charge in NIL (Name, Image, and Likeness) development and helping athletes nationwide understand and navigate this new territory.
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This story isn’t just about my son’s success—it’s about what happens when young people are given the right tools and opportunities. At FLEA, we believe students can achieve extraordinary things when exposed to challenges, encouraged to step outside their comfort zones, and pushed to give their best. We don’t underestimate their potential, and time and time again, they rise to the occasion. FLEA ensures that more students get the chance to realize they are capable of greatness.
Meet the Team
Steven Thompson - Executive Director
Steven Thompson is a strategic business leader and mentor known for building successful organizations and departments through hands-on training and development. Over the course of his 35-year career, he has created high-performing software, marketing, business acquisition, and development teams across industries, including financial services, insurance, telecommunications, and information systems technology, in both government and commercial sectors.
Steve's commitment to education is embodied in his vision for the Future Leaders Entrepreneur Academy (FLEA), which seeks to unlock the potential of eighth-grade students. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Systems Management and an MBA focusing on Finance from Rockhurst University in Kansas City, MO. He has also earned certifications in the Scaling Up Master's Business Course and Cash, Profits, and Value from the Growth Institute in Austin, Texas.
