Representing PW at DECA Internationals
by PWHS juniors Eliza Meersman and Ethan Gold
Just last month, from April 24th to 29th, PWHS had five students compete at the DECA International Career Development Conference (ICDC) that they qualified for by being top finishers in their category at the State Competition. At the conference, held in Atlanta Georgia, nearly 26,000 students competed in over 60 different events to demonstrate their skills in entrepreneurship, finance, hospitality, project management, and so much more.
After placing second at the PA State Conference, juniors Eliza Meersman and Ethan Gold competed in the Community Giving Event at ICDC, where they presented their dog rescue assistance project called PawPath Consulting. Eliza shared that she is “so grateful to have the opportunity to develop and share about a cause close to both [her] and Ethan’s hearts” through DECA.
Fifth place finishers at states, sophomores Kevin Dimarco and Tyler Yuen, competed in the Franchise Business Plan. Tyler mentioned that ICDC “taught [him] how to professionally present ideas and think on [his] feet when answering questions from judges. It taught [him] the importance of strong teamwork, communication, and trusting each other”.
Senior Zachary Halbert, who placed fourth at states, participated in Accounting Applications where he studied accounting principals for an exam and then also completed role plays to demonstrate his skills based on hypothetical scenarios. Zach mentioned that “Honesty, ICDC surprised [him], because students appeared more calm and more social.” After reflecting, he realized that “at a certain point, DECA doesn't just train you to work hard for your event and resemble a confident businessperson, but it transforms you to become that confident businessperson. Therefore, with such refined skills that there's little need to stress about the DECA competition.”
In their free time, the students and their advisor and PWHS teacher, Ms. Beth Rickard also planned tons of activities to make the most out of their time in Atlanta. These activities included a trip to the Georgia Aquarium, Coca Cola Factory, and College Football Hall of Fame. They even went to a Bruno Mars concert!
Additionally, the students agreed that connecting with new people was one of the best parts of the ICDC. Eliza said that they “traded state pins with other students at the conference to collect the best ones, and ended up meeting people from all over! Interacting with so many people builds real-world skills in sales and value analysis as well since everyone is negotiating to get the best trade.” Everywhere they went, the group seemed to meet people; they even played football for nearly two hours in the central park with students from Utah, which Eliza mentioned was “a very memorable highlight”.
Overall, despite no finalist appearances from PW, all of the students wanted to extend “a huge thank you to everyone who made the experience possible, which includes [their] advisor (Ms. Rickard), district administrators, parents, and supporters. [They] are so grateful for the opportunity to grow their business skills while making lifelong friendships and memories!”
As Zach graduates this year, he summarized the ICDC experience perfectly on behalf of the group: “Even if you don't win, the experience DECA provides leaves you prepared to succeed after your tangible ties with the organization are all but severed. And for that, [we] owe the entire DECA organization [our] sincerest gratitude."