FORT WAYNE, Ind. (WANE) — On Wednesday, Amp Lab at Electric Works launched a $25,000 student venture fund aimed at helping aspiring high school entrepreneurs.

According to Fort Wayne Community Schools (FWCS), the funding will help businesses developed by Amp Lab students build, test and validate their ideas.

“Our goal with the Amp Lab Venture Fund is to increase the capital resources available to the most promising ideas,” said Riley Johnson, director of Amp Lab. “By giving students a seat at the table now, we can remove many barriers that exist to bringing a concept to market.”

Amp Lab receiving the funding through the Indiana Department of Education’s Educational Excellence Award, which Amp Lab received in September.

Amp Lab is a half-day program for FWCS juniors and seniors that “focuses on entrepreneurial spirit, innovation and design across industry sectors.”