Arundel High Junior Juggles Class, Entrepreneurship

Kegan Abbott rises early and attends class like most other Arundel High students, but it's after school when things get exciting for him. 

That's when Abbott gets to work. 

The 16-year-old from Odenton is juggling his studies while also launching a new mobile startup that has gained some attention from people in Silicon Valley. 

"It isn't easy, but it's a lifestyle," he said. "I like to think my day starts at 2:05 p.m."

Abbott has been known to check his cell phone in class—much to the chagrin of his teachers—and he's missed a few days of school to fly out west to meet with business partners. 

His venture is called Printware, and it's a mobile application designed to help businesses refill printers and copiers on the fly. He started working on the idea after his father—who works in the printing industry—told him about difficulties companies had getting ink and toner quickly. 

"I already had an interest in technology," he said. "So I just started messing around with mobile applications."

Abbott and his father sought help from professional designers and investors, and are now hard at work on a second version of the app. The pair recently returned from a meeting in California, where he received some considerable attention at a tech conference.  

His entrepreneurship also got him some attention in Anne Arundel County, after the Greater Crofton Chamber of Commerce honored him as its Young Entrepreneur of the Year. Abbott plans to donate the $375 prize to Arundel's theater company. (He works on the lighting systems.)

Abbott said he thinks Printware could be ready to take off, but it's been a challenging road He recalled a time earlier this year after he and his father agreed to work with a designer. They loved the work, but getting the money together to pay him wasn't easy. 

"It was like 'how quickly can we grow a new kidney if we were to donate one?'" Abbott joked. 

The administration and staff at Arundel have made things a bit easier on Abbott; he is permitted to get alternative credits and uses his Wildcat Hour to work on the business.

"It's gotten a lot easier as Arundel has realized what we're doing," he said. "Arundel is a very supportive community."

Abbott said he has ambitions to attend college, but hasn't thought too much about it. All of his spare attention is focused on Printware, he said. 

"I'm about two days ahead of myself at this point," he said. "That's about all I can deal with."