22 students will be heading to Orlando, Florida on April 25, to attend the DECA International Career Development Conference. After competing at the District Career Development Conference and the State Career Development Conference, they have earned their spot at internationals, and they are currently preparing so that they can do their best.
Making it to internationals is one of the biggest accomplishments for these DECA students because they have worked so hard on their projects all year long, and they had to compete against very hard competition to make it. One student who qualified this year is Alyssa Ganop. This is her third year doing DECA, and she said, “I am so proud of my group for even just getting called up on stage. We have faced so many struggles and battles this year, but when they called our names on stage, it was all so worth it. This was my last chance to go to nationals since I’m a senior, and I’m so glad I did it. I would have just been happy getting called up on stage, but making it to nationals was so much more rewarding.”
To prepare for internationals, the students are revising their papers and making any changes they need to so they can resubmit them. They are also practicing their presentations and making any changes they need to because not everyone who made it is attending. Most of the students who made it to internationals are in groups of 3 people, and because not everyone is attending, some groups are now competing without one of their partners. Practicing their presentation is important because if they are now missing someone, they will need to learn and get comfortable with the new parts they are presenting so that they can be ready to go against their tough competitors.
Even though competing at an international level can be really stressful and hard, these students are definitely still excited and proud of themselves for making it. Rylie Debacker, the DECA President, made it for the second time in a row this year and said, “ICDC is one of the most rewarding and exciting things to look forward to. From months of very hard work, it has paid off, and we are finally able to be successful and have fun in Florida.” One of Rylie’s DECA partners, Austin VanMarter, said, “Qualifying to nationals is just the first step for me and my group; we want to win it all for us because this is our second year making it, and we want to do the best that we can do.”
While competing at ICDC is the main reason these students are going to Orlando, they will also be attending Universal Studios twice. They will still get to have fun and relax in Florida as a reward for their months of hard work and dedication. These students will spend a total of five days in Orlando, Florida, and return home on April 30, after competing at the DECA International Career Development Conference.
