MVRHS Business students competed in their first DECA (Distributed Education Clubs of America) Career Conference and Competition held on January 7th-8th at the Boston Marriott Quincy. Students competed and networked with over 950 peers from across Eastern Mass. in more than 25 categories of individual and team events – all including real life business role plays before a team of business professionals who acted as judges. After the role plays, students attended career workshops, a banquet dinner, and took a 100 question writtten exam in their competitive field. Nine MVRHS students attended and competed in the following events – Principles of Marketing, Buying & Merchandising, Hospitality & Hotel Management, Sports & Entertainment Management, and Travel & Tourism.
After the competitive events, students were able to attend a dance, and enjoy a pizza party, karaoke, and game room. The following morning, we all had brunch, watched awards for DECA’s Lifeskill students, and attended the event’s Grand Awards ceremony – where the top 10 winners from each category were recognized. All our students did a great job and special recognition goes to Iris Albert, Arden Bezahler, and Megan Piche. Iris and Arden placed in the top 10 in the Hospitality and Hotel Management Team Decision Making category, while Megan received top 10 recognition in the individual series event Principles of Marketing.
While our first delegation just missed out on advancing to the State Conference in March (top 8 advance in each category) – we will move on to States for a Quiz Bowl competition.
– Josh Burgoyne