Arlington Teen Auditions for ABC'S 'Shark Tank'

Could an Arlington teen be pitching her idea soon for the investors of ABC's Shark Tank? We'll find out in a couple weeks.

Zanab Farooq, a 17-year-old junior at Yorktown High School, auditioned for the popular show on Wednesday, June 15 in Crystal City. She's the founder of Z14 cases, which produces custom cell phone cases, according to an Arlington Chamber of Commerce statement.

Farooq created her idea as a sophomore participating in the Young Entrepreneurs Academy hosted by the Arlington Chamber in partnership with Marymount University. The program is meant to teach middle and high school students how to open a business.

"It was a very nerve racking experience as I was the only high school student participating," Farooq said in the statement.

Farooq won $780 to help launch her business after pitching it at the investor panel presentation portion of the Young Entrepreneurs Academy. She also won a $500 shopping spree courtesy of Sams Club.

"Throughout the program, students develop business ideas, write business plans, pitch their plan to a panel of investors, and launch their own fully registered business or social movement," the statement adds. "Since the program's inception in Arlington in 2014, YEA! has graduated 26 students and 16 unique businesses."

ABC's Shark Tank premiered in 2009 and is based on the format of Dragons' Den, which has been running in Japan since 2001. In the show, entrepreneurs pitch their businesses to a panel of "shark" investors, who choose whether or not to invest in the idea.

Investors on the show's panel include Mark Cuban, billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, and Daymond John, founder and CEO of clothing line FUBU.

Image via Arlington Chamber of Commerce