43 West Bloomfield Students Qualify for DECA Internationals

Detroit, Michigan – 54 West Bloomfield High School DECA students earned top honors at the 2018 DECA State Competition. A total of 43 students from West Bloomfield School District have qualified for a spot at the DECA International Career Development Conference in Atlanta, Georgia this April. This was the largest group to ever attend the State Competition from the district, and is also their largest group to qualify for the International competition.

The weekend of March 9th-11th, 98 students from the West Bloomfield High School DECA chapter attended the State Career Development Conference in Detroit, Michigan. This was a weekend long leadership and business conference and competition. Students were given the opportunity to meet DECA members from around the state, interact with important business representatives and compete for a chance to represent West Bloomfield School District and Michigan DECA in Atlanta Georgia April 20-25.

To move on to the International level, students had to place among the top 13% of DECA members across Michigan. Over 4,500 marketing students from schools across the state competed for one of 500 spots.

April 21-24, 2018 each of the following students will travel to Atlanta, Georgia with over 19,000 DECA members, advisors and corporate sponsors for the pinnacle event of the DECA year. They will spend four days networking, competing, exploring the city and celebrating each of their achievements. Below are the students who will represent West Bloomfield School District in Atlanta:

Julia Abramson, (12), Community Service Project
Brian Bembas, (12), Creative Marketing Project and Virtual Business Sports
Sydney Bruce, (12), Business Services Operations Research Event
Jack Budde, (12), Sports and Entertainment Marketing Operations Research Event
Josh Carlin, (12), Virtual Business Challenge - Hotel Management and Buying and Merchandising Operations Research
Jake Cohen, (12), Virtual Business Challenge - Fashion
Zachary Crawford, (11), Hospitality and Tourism Operations Research
Pratham Dhanjal, (12), Virtual Business Challenge - Accounting
Erin Dickinson, (12), Independent Business Plan
Kyle Feldman, (12), Buying and Merchandising Operations Research Event
Ari Felhandler, (12), Buying and Merchandising Operations Research Event
Vietress Feller, (12), Virtual Business Challenge - Fashion and Business Services Operations Research
Danielle Fink, (12), Business Services Operations Research Event
Lauren Gagnon, (12), Business Services Operations Research Event
Collin Goan, (12), Franchise Business Plan
Zack Goldman, (12), Business Growth Plan
Michelle Grigorov, (12), Independent Business Plan
Emily Hamama, (12), Community Service Project
Zachary Isenberg, (12), Finance Operations Research Event
Grant Jones, (12), Buying and Merchandising Operations Research
Maria Kakos, (12), Hospitality and Tourism Professional Selling Event
Nickon Katibai, (12), Business Growth Plan
Uday Kode, (12), Finance Operations Research Event
Matthew Ladouceur, (12), Creative Marketing Project and Virtual Business Sports
David Martin, (10), Virtual Business Challenge - Sports
Rhea Mathias, (12), Sports and Entertainment Marketing Operations Research Event
Rachel McDowell, (12), Independent Business Plan
Marcus McLaughlin, (12), Virtual Business Challenge - Sports
Rei Mizuno, (12), Virtual Business Challenge - Hotel Management
Nina Perry, (11), Buying and Merchandising Operations Research Event
Jay Rubin, (11), International Business Plan
Michelle Rudashevski, (12), Virtual Business Challenge -Fashion and Business Operations Research
Jacob Saperstein, (12), Finance Operations Research Event
Andrew Schwartz, (11), International Business Plan
Nicholas Seidel, (12), Sports and Entertainment Marketing Operations Research Event
Ethan Talampas, (12), Buying and Merchandising Operations Research Event
Kapil Vyas, (12), Community Service Project
Benjamin Woolverton, (12), Buying and Merchandising Operations Research Event
Kasper Zemajtis, (12), Virtual Business Challenge -Hotel Management
Kayla Zrepskey, (12), Business Services Operations Research Event
Sundeep Ravella, (10), Virtual Business Challenge - Sports
Samuel Rudin, (10), Virtual Business Challenge - Sports
Rishabh Parekh, (12), Buying and Merchandising Operations Research Event

On Friday, West Bloomfield DECA members arrived at The Detroit Marriott at Renaissance Center in Detroit. Over 4,500 students then gathered into their respective categories for a briefing on their competition. Each student was issued a time slot. After the competition, students had dinner and prepared for Saturday activities. The evening concluded with an Opening Ceremony welcoming students to the State Career Development Conference. Saturday included another round of competitions, and a West Bloomfield chapter activity at Punch Bowl Social. This was followed by a West Bloomfield High School chapter dinner at Andiamo’s and a performance by hypnotist Brian Imbus.

The weekend ended with the award's ceremony on Sunday, where students were recognized for outstanding performances for online testing, role play presentations and written research reports with oral presentations.

“This past weekend was not only an incredibly fun trip, but also a vital learning experience for all students participating. WBHS students learned a lot about each other and our community while competing for a chance to get to Atlanta. This chapter has been like a second family to me and I will be forever grateful for this organization that has helped me grow into a better student and a better person in general.” - Vietress Feller, (12), Virtual Business Challenge- Fashion and Business Services Operations Research

About West Bloomfield High School DECA-
DECA is an International Competitive Business Organization that prepares emerging leaders and entrepreneurs in four fields of business: marketing, finance, hospitality, and management. Our DECA chapter integrates classroom instruction, applies learning, connects to business, and promotes competition to prepare the next generation to be academically prepared, community oriented, professionally responsible, and experienced leaders. Students enrolled in Growing your Business I & II, Marketing, Sports and Entertainment Marketing or Advanced Marketing, Accounting, Advanced Placement Micro and Macroeconomics or Fashion have an opportunity to participate in the West Bloomfield DECA club.

For further inquiries please contact:
Julie Zalla
West Bloomfield High School
4925 Orchard Lake Road
West Bloomfield, MI 48323
julie.zalla@wbsd.org