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Be it a tie-dye shirt or socks, ecofriendly soaps or cologne, all the items at Tuesday’s Kids in Biz Expo are handcrafted by Asbury Park High School students enrolled in The Spot.

The Spot is a youth service program funded by the NJ Dept. of Children and Families in collaboration with Visiting Nurse Association Health Group and by an in-kind contribution from the school district.

Although the year-round program is one on 90 across the state, it is tailored to suit the city’s youth, said director Jaclyn Headlam.

“Services are accessible and structured for the purpose of youth achieving positive physical and emotional health,” Headlam said. “Our mission is to enrich and enhance the lives of youth and thereby increase their likelihood of completing their education and develop skills necessary for employment and continuing their education.”

In this particular case, the Expo is based on Kids in Biz creator Melissa Williams’ curriculum.

Her entrepreneurial training program is open to students ages 7 to 17. Since its inception in 2009, Williams [shown at right] has published a book by the same name, and offered the programs in Monmouth County communities like Long Branch, Neptune and Asbury Park.

“It teaches them everything from how to start a lemonade stand to mowing lawns,” Williams said. “We teach them how to price their commodity and how to market themselves.”

This is the second consecutive year the program has run in the Asbury Park school district but the first year the students will feature their items at an expo, Williams said.

The Kids in Biz Expo runs 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. today in Room 122 of the Asbury Park High School, 1003 Sunset Avenue.

For more information, visit www.kidsinbiz1.org or the school district website.

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