DECA competed in their first tournament Monday, Oct. 25 at Blue Valley High School. The team brought back many placements, with junior Libby Strathman placing first overall in her category. 

“I compete in the Principles of Business Management category. Due to COVID-19 there was no awards ceremony, so I had no idea how I did,” Strathman said. “I was planning on going and getting my scores from [business teacher Dianna] Heffernon[-Meyers] after school on Tuesday, but she ended up coming to my last block and telling me I got first. I was really surprised because it was my first competition.” 

According to DECA Vice President senior Declan Taylor, the various categories that DECA consists of help prepare students for real-life experience. 

“DECA gets students acquainted with the business world and lets them build up skills for interviews and how to conduct themselves in a general business setting,” Taylor said. “DECA also helps students build up confidence and public speaking skills, which are valuable in any setting. DECA is very beneficial to anyone who joins.” 

Strathman described how DECA tournaments work. 

“DECA competitions have two parts. The first part is a 100 question multiple choice test about your specific category,” Strathman said. “The other part is a role which tests your ability to hit different performance indicators. For the role play, you get 10 minutes to plan for your scenario and then you go present to a judge which is supposed to mimic a real-life business situation.”

Many students earned awards at the tournament, according to Taylor. 

“At our last tournament, we had [senior] Bret Weber take second in Marketing Communications Series, [junior] Libby Strathman take first in Principles of Business Management and [seniors] Kennedy Yeoman and Aliya Kisivo took sixth and second, respectively, in Principles of Hospitality.” 

Speaking on why DECA is beneficial, Strathman explained her view of the club. 

“I joined DECA about a week before the first competition because my college advisor told me it would be good on my applications and I thought it would be fun,” Strathman said. “For DECA, you have to dress up in business attire to compete which is kind of funny, but is also a super helpful experience knowing what to wear for formal things like internships or interviews.” 

Taylor believed that DECA is an easy club to join. 

“To join DECA, you just need to come by [Heffernon-Myers’] room in the upper C hallway to pick up the packet on her door,” Taylor said. “The packet says it’s due by a certain date, but you can turn it in at any time and you’ll get the information sent to you about meetings or tournaments.”