The Distributive Education Clubs of America (DECA) State competition took place in Boston from Feb. 27 to March 1. Ninety four members of Algonquin’s DECA chapter traveled to compete and 17 individuals qualified for the International Career Development Conference (ICDC).
There are two different ways that students compete at states: through a roleplay or with a written project. In order to qualify for ICDC in Orlando, Florida, competitors must place in the top seven in their roleplay and top six in written projects.
Math teacher and DECA advisor Lauren Hesemeyer has been involved with advising many clubs around the school, with DECA being one of the larger clubs she is involved with.
“States are two nights in Boston,” Hesemeyer said. “We compete all day on Thursday and Friday and then Saturday is our awards ceremony, so students will compete in one roleplay or written presentation on Thursday, they’ll compete in another Friday morning and then if they make it to the final round, they get to compete again, Friday afternoon.”
The competition consisted of DECA students from across Massachusetts who recently placed at their respective District competitions and earned a spot at the next level. Over the course of the weekend, participants stayed in hotels, explored the city and competed in their categories for DECA. Co-president Lily Dumont believes that DECA isn’t just a school trip, but also an experience that allows for time with friends.
“We got to enjoy the Seaport and saw some cool things and got to go to some food places around the hotel,” Dumont said. “We kind of got the experience of not just a school activity, but also a time to hang out with your friends and just not always have to focus on DECA.”
Students also got to enjoy an exclusive opportunity with “DECA After Dark.”
“We have ‘DECA After Dark,’ so they get to do fun things and meet new people from other schools that are also competing in DECA,” Hesemyer said. “It’s a big networking event. There’s also workshops that kids can go to for leadership and networking skills throughout every single day. They get to network with actual business professionals all day long.”
