BY TAMARAH WALLACE
Since the beginning of the school year, DECA students have been perfecting their manuals and testing skills in various categories such as finance, foodservice, and hospitality in order to demonstrate their business prowess. On January 23rd at the 48th annual Broward County DECA Awards ceremony at Nova Southeastern University, members who qualified for the 57th Annual Florida DECA Career Development Conference in Orlando in March were commemorated for their progression to the aforementioned state competition.
“We worked so hard so it’s great that we were to be able to progress in the DECA program and continue to compete,” Junior Rebecca Pretty said.
The following DECA members qualified for the statewide competition in Orlando by placing for either testing or manuals in the district:
Adina Deutsch, Aidan Kenig, Aiden Adams, Alec Stofsky, Alexa Katz, Alexandra Deso, Alina Pereyra, Alix Sweigert, Alonso Mendoza, Ana Arabadzhi, Angelica Rohloff, Angelina Padilla, Ariel Goldberg, Ariel Marcus, Ariel Vorona, Artur Bekker, Azure Gomez, Ben Milgrim, Berwyn Haum, Branden Williams, Brett Bartel, Brittany Shechtman, Bryce Weinsier, Caitlin Reto, Caitlin Andrei, Caleb Wilson, Cameron Pritchett, Carolina Chriari, Caroline Callahan, Caroline Dejtiar, Cayla Yellen, Chloe Laviolette, Chris Perry, Christine Kim, Daniel Lobaton, Daniel Stone, Danielle Gilchristm, Danielle Kurtz, Devlin Hart, Dillon Weiss, Dylan Silver, Ethan Frankel, Emily Ehrlich, Emma Sheridan, Ethan Roberts, Eva Rador, Gabriella Horenstein, Hannah Cohen, Heather Mcleod, Hunter Harrington, Issy Aloya, Jake Doherty, Jake Gallagher, James Runnebaum, Jenny Burleton, Jeremy Brower, Jessica Andrei, Joaquin Guarisma, Jordan Aronson, Juan Bustamante, Julie Kim, Kailey Roadruck, Katherine Smith, Katie Slinkosky, Kayla Burge, Kristina Smith, Kristoff Kerr, Landon Counts, Lauren Bouskila, Logan Piper, Lucas Cusir, Lucia Tsai, Lyndsey Kleiman, Madison Mutzman, Mark Serben, Matt Plonskier, Matthew Coleman, Matthew Schwam, Max Mickenberg, Michael Oyahon, Michael Poates, Natalia Aguirre, Natalie Sesodia, Nathan Wilson, Nic Dorn, Nicole Artime, Nicole Barry, Nicole Jacobs, Nicole Tjin a Djie, Noah Gannon, Noah Peska, Nora Mirabal, Ofek Peer, Paul Bacher, Quinn Shust, Ray Quach, Rebecca Pretty, Rohan Patel, Saharah Reid, Sam Mickenberg, Sammy Stofsky, Sara Weiss, Shaddi Abdala, Shayna Cohen, Shelby Jones, Shoval Grunberger, Simone Goldberg, Talia Slann, Tamarah Wallace, Tayler Ford, Taylor Davidson, Taylor Handelman, Taylor Mills, Timmy Krause, Troy Hollander, Wen Lin, William Kroener, Yassen Mubarak, and Zach Pimental.
The following people are on the “bubble,” meaning that if someone who is ranked higher than they are declines their chance to attend the conference, they will be able to fill their spot and compete.
Neehal Hussain, Hunter Becker-Greene, Karen Ortiz, David Castano, Ally Hartman, Angel Reji, Cameron Sweet, Nithin Mathew, Michael Keneth, Sean Storfer, Blake Horowitz, Robert Schreiber, Jonathan Shi, Anthony Soffian, Lauryn Darcy, Breanna Arocha, Paula Seraphim, Daniel Tila Cohen, Nathaniel Meyerowitz, Lea Friedman, Tori Francis, Brianna Hutchins, Cameron Sokol, Michael Samuel , Jenna Hack, Olivia Steinman, and Jimmy Michaels.
Many business students can attest to the academic as well as social benefits of the DECA program, which offers classes and a corresponding club.
“This year I competed in the Franchise Business Plan category and I think that being in DECA is a great way to meet lifelong friends with similar interests but still be competitive” Pretty said.
Competitor and sophomore, Christine Kim, shared her DECA experience and her excitement for the future.
“I felt really happy when I found out I placed at districts,” Kim said. “ And even though writing a 30 page manual was really time consuming, I can honestly say that I enjoyed the process, especially because I got to do it with my friends. I am really looking forward to competing at states with them.”
Since DECA members are part of a well-connected group of students and teachers, success is in part due to the support of Cooper City High School’s business community.
“This year I competed in hospitality and tourism professional selling” Junior Talia Slann said. “This event is new to me but with help from my sponsors and peers, I was able to place second in the district.”
Overall, congratulations are in order for the CCHS DECA students who have shown expertise in their business event and will continue to represent their school at the state conference.
