Why Adam’s Story Is in Your JA Inspire Journal.

Honoring Adam Kuppersmith at JA Inspire 2026

Note to readers: Each year, students from across Southern California gather for JA Inspire—an immersive educational experience designed to help young people explore careers, build confidence, and imagine what’s possible for their futures. This blog post was created to share more about a man who helped make this event possible. Students will find his photo inside their JA Inspire journals, along with a QR code that leads them here.

Dear JA Inspire Students,

When you open your JA Inspire journal, you’ll see a drawing of a man you may not have known. His name is Adam Kuppersmith.

If you are one of the students attending JA Inspire on March 11 or 12, this post is especially for you. (JA Inspire is a one-day experience for students — with a new group attending each day — designed to help you explore careers, ask questions, and imagine what’s possible.)

And if you are a parent, educator, donor, or community member who happens to be reading this, we want you to know why his story is part of this moment.

You are holding this journal, in part, because of him.

Adam was an English teacher at Huntington Park High School. He believed in pushing his students beyond what they thought possible. He was funny, smart, and loyal. He loved comic books, My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, and Magic: The Gathering. He fenced twice a week, simply because it brought him joy.

He was the kind of teacher who showed up fully.

If a student had a problem, he looked for a solution.
If he believed a student’s rights were being overlooked, he stood up and fought for them.
If someone doubted themselves, he encouraged them to stretch further than they thought they could.

Most of all, he hoped that his part in his students’ lives would help them find better futures.

On August 12, 2025, Adam passed away. In the face of unimaginable loss, his wife, Ellen, chose to honor his life in a way that reflects what mattered most to him. She established the Adam Kuppersmith Memorial Fund through Junior Achievement of Southern California. The fund makes experiences like JA Inspire possible for students across Southern California.

That includes you.

Over the course of your one day at JA Inspire, you will meet professionals, explore careers, and begin connecting your interests to real-world pathways. You may feel confident. You may feel unsure. You may discover something completely new.

Inside your journal, you’ll also find this quote:

“It’s okay to struggle; it means you’re trying. Even the greatest spells require practice and patience. Keep pushing forward, and you’ll see the magic in your progress.”

Starlight Glimmer (My Little Pony)

This quote stands on its own as a reminder that progress isn’t instant. Growth takes practice. Trying matters.

JA Inspire exists because people believe in your potential even before you have everything figured out. The Adam Kuppersmith Memorial Fund is a gift rooted in that same belief. It is a reminder that someone dedicated his life to helping students move toward stronger futures and that his legacy continues in rooms like this one.

This journal is more than paper.
JA Inspire is more than a single day.
And your future is more than a question mark.

It is possibility in motion.

As you write in these pages and imagine what comes next, know that this opportunity was given in love and in belief; belief in students, belief in growth, and belief in progress.

Keep pushing forward.