DECA Off To States
Sports seem to be what
most people’s eyes are on when it comes to extracurricular activities at
Whitman-Hanson. Outside of sports, one of the most popular clubs is DECA.
However, the many aspects of this club and the achievements made by its’
members often go unnoticed.
DECA is a club that pertains to all things business. The organization as
a whole helps to prepare high school students for careers in business
pertaining to marketing, finance, hospitality, and management. There are over
200,000 students involved with DECA across the country. The opportunities that
DECA brings to students are endless. Many scholarships are available for
competitors who excel at DECA. For example, the Harry Applegate scholarship
program awards scholarships to students who demonstrate outstanding DECA
involvement, leadership ability, community service and academic performance. Most
importantly, DECA helps pave the way for many students to find excellent
college and job opportunities for their future. The program teaches valuable
college and career skills that students are easily able to use once they leave
high school.
DECA
has a very straightforward competition process. There are individual and team
categories available to compete in. In an individual competition, one must
complete two role play scenarios and a written test. In a role play, you are a
given a specific scenario with limited time to prepare before you go in front
of a judge and tell them all you know. Role plays teach students to think on
their feet and to be prepared for anything a job might throw at them in the
real world. The written test is 100 multiple choice questions, and they test
your knowledge of several components of business. Teams are only required to
complete one role play and one test, but they also go to a team workshop.
Awards are given to the top test and role play scores for each category.
Finally, the participants moving to states are announced just before the
competition commences.
One
of the DECA advisors at Whitman-Hanson is Ms. Nelson, who acknowledges that
being an advisor comes with great responsibility. “I make sure we prepare for
the competitions, make sure we get the money and proper permissions, as well as
transportation,” said Nelson. DECA advisors do work outside of our own school.
“We also have to attend DECA meetings with other advisors at Plymouth North,”
explained Nelson. Preparing for competitions is very difficult, and Ms. Nelson
acknowledges different strategies she uses to help her students. “I tell them
to do the tests and practice the role plays. There’s so many ways of
[preparing] nowadays.” Ms. Nelson has had a lot of experience with DECA, and
reflected on some of her fondest memories. “As fun and exciting it is to see
kids progress when they are here, what’s really cool is to see when [kids] come
back and how they talk about it,” exclaimed Nelson. Ms. Nelson is also very
proud of the way in which her students conduct themselves at competitions as
they “have never had a discipline problem.” Ms. Nelson wants people to know the
amazing benefits that DECA gives to its’ participants. “[DECA] gives the kids
some real life, outside of the classroom experience,” she said. DECA teaches
students “how to dress, how to act, how to talk to somebody you don’t know, how
to make eye contact, how to shake hands” and much more, Nelson explained. Ms.
Nelson has put so much effort into this organization and truly gets the best
out of her students.
Dan
Hickey is the President of DECA at Whitman-Hanson, and has a lot to say about
the club he runs. One of the coolest things about DECA is that “you get to
compete with kids from all over the state and all over the country,” says
Hickey. “You really get to fine-tune your business skills. I especially like it
because you get a lot of opportunities for scholarships within DECA,” he
explained.
Eric
Muha is a 2-year seasoned veteran of DECA. This year, Muha competed in Business
Finance Services; he put a lot of hard work into getting ready for this year’s
competition. “After school, I would go to Ms. Nelson’s room and take practice
tests. I also researched Quizlets online,” stated Muha. Eric knows a lot about
the process and pressure of role plays. “You receive a scenario, such as
interviewing for a job or position, and you get ten minutes to prepare before
you go in and give your presentation to a judge. It is very nerve racking
before you get in there, but once you get going its fine.” Muha also stresses
that “with hard work and preparation,” it is not that difficult to do well in
DECA. When asked about his advisors (Ms. Nelson and Mr. Maiorino), Muha had
nothing but positive feedback. “Ms. Nelson is so helpful. She does so much work
for this club,” he exclaimed. “Mr. Maiorino is crucial to the club’s operation,
and he really lets things go smoothly.” Eric has advanced to the State
competition, and is ready to begin training. “I will stay after one to two
times a week to focus on questions and scenarios. I will also do a lot more
research on my category.” With that being said, Muha has his motivation going
into the next level of competition: “the glory of victory.”
DECA
is a very intriguing club and it is something that all of Whitman-Hanson’s
students should give a try. Not only does DECA offer valuable life skills for
the future, it is a very fun and exciting experience.
-Cam Rogers ‘18
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