Happy New Year! 2023 is here! Let the New Year’s resolutions begin! Whether you are a person who makes resolutions or not, this new year is ripe with possibilities and opportunities … known and unknown. In addition, this year will bring challenges and unexpected difficulties into our lives. As students and teachers, we experience the start of a new academic year in August each year, and it too, is filled with possibility and opportunity, challenges and difficulties. I personally have been on an academic calendar for more than five decades now and appreciate the rhythm of beginning anew and closing a school year. It is certainly something that many career fields do not offer.
At the start of this school year, thirty-five (35) students joined the CLHS DECA chapter. Twenty-seven (27) of those students, consisting of 5 seniors, 7 juniors, 7 sophomores and 8 freshmen, are doing DECA for the first time! This is Exciting! This is Daring! Trying something new! High School is a great time to do such things! But you may be wondering yourself … what is DECA?
In short, DECA is a non-profit student organization with more than 170,000 high school members from the United States, Guam, Puerto Rico, Canada, and Germany. And CLHS has 35 of them! There are 3,200 high school chapters, and you guessed it, CLHS is one of them! DECA also has collegiate DECA chapters/members. DECA’s main goal is to prepare emerging leaders and entrepreneurs for careers in marketing, finance, hospitality and management.
One of the ways this is accomplished is through the opportunities to compete in DECA. DECA’s flagship evaluation process involves students in both a written component such as an exam or report and an interactive component with an industry professional serving as a judge.
Our district consists of CLHS, Homestead, Canterbury, Snider, Lakeland and Mississenewa. Our district competition is Saturday, January 14, and Manchester University is serving as host for our event.
The students have been gearing up for this event by doing practice exam questions and studying role plays. The top 6 students from the events will advance to state competition in early March when they will be competing with the top students from around Indiana. The top performers at State Competition will advance to International DECA Competition which will be held in Orlando, Florida in late April. Interwoven into the competition preparation, our DECA chapter will have guest speakers, engage in community service, and learn about business career fields.
Amidst all the new opportunities and challenges that 2023 is sure to bring, may we all find security and peace in God’s eternal changelessness.
Lord Christ, Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, whose years never fail; may I so pass through the coming year with a faithful heart, that in all things I may please you and reflect Your glory; for You are alive and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. ~ Mazarabic Sacramentary—(7th C.)
Luanne Erdos,
DECA Adviser