Five Business Club Students Qualify for the DECA International Career Development Conference

Business+Club+students+participated+in+the+Florida+DECA+Career+Development+Conference%2C+Feb.+28-Mar.+3+in+Orlando.+The+students+qualified+for+the+state+conference+by+performing+well+at+the+district-level+competition+in+December.+Five+students+qualified+to+compete+at+the+DECA+International+Career+Development+Conference%2C+which+will+take+place+in+Orlando%2C+in+late+April.++Photo+by+Daniela+Brenha+Werlich+de+Abreu.

Business Club students participated in the Florida DECA Career Development Conference, Feb. 28-Mar. 3 in Orlando. The students qualified for the state conference by performing well at the district-level competition in December. Five students qualified to compete at the DECA International Career Development Conference, which will take place in Orlando, in late April. Photo by Daniela Brenha Werlich de Abreu.

Lara Russell-Lasalandra, Copy Editor and Video Producer

Five students from the Business Club qualified for DECA nationals after scoring well in the state conference held in Orlando Feb. 28-Mar. 3.

DECA is an organization that promotes the development of emerging business leaders in four main areas: marketing, hospitality & tourism, business administration, and finance.

“There are many specific events within each of the four categories that the students can compete in,” said Business Club sponsor and business teacher Daniela Brenha.  

Every tuesday, members of the Business Club met to study for the written portion of the DECA competition.

“They would prepare and study after school in meetings. The test was a multiple choice exam on the computer. It was 100 questions in 90 minutes,” said Brenha.

In addition to taking the written exam, students also acted out a business role play scenario. Those who did well in both segments moved on to nationals, where participants will have to complete another multiple choice exam, a preliminary role play scenario, and a final role play scenario.

Five students一seniors Lauren Garbett and Kyle Valdes, junior Emma Wang, and freshmen Eduardo Roth and Elizabeth Rivabem一will compete at the DECA International Career Development Conference in late April. Junior Reuben Krys received an honorable mention.

“The fact that 5 out of 18 students qualified means we did very well, especially since we are competing with schools with over 4,000 students. I’m very proud of them,” said Brenha.