On March 5-7, 32 members of the University High School chapter of DECA competed in the 2023 Indiana DECA State Career Development Conference (SCDC) at the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown. Approximately 50 Indiana schools and 1,800 students were represented in the state competition.
Twelve Trailblazers received special recognition at the state level, and a record six qualified to compete in DECA’s International Career Development Conference (ICDC) in Orlando next month where more than 20,000 high school students, teacher-advisors, business professionals, and alumni will gather for the event. A 4th place finish or better in any category qualifies a competitor for internationals.
Business Manager Mike Hagan was also recognized for his five years of service as the UHS DECA chapter advisor. Additionally, the chapter received a certificate for being a Membership Campaign Winner at the achievement level for the 2022-23 season!
- Senior Cate Dollins earned first place in the state in the Retail Merchandising category and will advance to compete at the international competition.
- Sophomore Phifer Whorley competed in the Accounting category and received second place overall. She will move forward to compete at the international competition.
- Juniors Hamza Raddad and Riley Waybright competed as a team in the Business Law & Ethics category and finished 2nd in the state. They too advance to compete at the international competition.
- Senior Karl Wang earned third place in the Food Marketing category and will advance to compete at the international level next month.
- Sophomore Stacy Xu earned 4th place overall in the state in the Quick Serve Restaurant Management category. She will move forward to the international competition.
- Junior Lindsey Blocksom competed in the Hospitality and Tourism category and finished 5th in the state.
- Sophomore Anisha Patel earned a position as a top ten finalist in the category of Hospitality and Tourism.
- Junior David Walz earned a position as a top ten finalist in the category of Business Management.
- Juniors Scarlett Fisher and Manasa Gannamaneni competed as a team in the Business Law & Ethics category and finished in the top ten in the state.
- Finally, senior Liam Coveney scored higher than 85 on his business role play in the Accounting category and received special recognition for his excellence.
DECA competition typically involves a 100-question test followed by a business role play that is worth up to 100 points.
DECA enables aspiring entrepreneurs and emerging leaders to be ready for the challenges of their future endeavors through community service, real world experience, and career-oriented competition.
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